


The Life We Live

by KatieWrites



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Angst, Christopher Diaz is a National Treasure, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Graphic Violence, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Roman!Bobby, Slow Build, Spartan!Athena, The Old Guard - Freeform, Viking!Buck, Viking!Maddie, buck is a little bit of a sadistic fuck for a little bit, buck likes his axe, mentioned relationships with abby and ali, some historical inaccuracies to make the characters fit in, way too much research happened for this, world building
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:35:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 22,333
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28487664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KatieWrites/pseuds/KatieWrites
Summary: *The Old Guard AU no one asked for*"Athena had seen many a millennium and many men, women, and children die. She had seen the rise and fall of civilizations. She had felt the pain of loneliness and the happiness of community...but she’d never, in her many years of living, seen something like Eddie, Buck, and Chris. She’d never seen this profound of a bond, even between herself and Bobby. After Buck lost Abby and, later, Ali, Athena wasn’t sure he would have let his heart reach out to another person that he could lose...but she was proud of him. He built something that was hard to come by in their way of living. He built a home."______Names: Euthymius is Bobby. Thalia is Ali. Abellona is Abby. Eyvindr is Buck. Magdalena is Maddie. Haregewoin is Hen. Yeong-Hwan is Chimney._______This starts slow because I had to do some 'world building'.
Relationships: Athena Grant/Bobby Nash, Evan "Buck" Buckley & Christopher Diaz (9-1-1 TV), Evan "Buck" Buckley & Eddie Diaz, Evan "Buck" Buckley & Maddie Buckley, Evan "Buck" Buckley/Abby Clark, Evan "Buck" Buckley/Ali Martin, Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV), Maddie Buckley & Howie "Chimney" Han, Maddie Buckley/Howie "Chimney" Han
Comments: 11
Kudos: 56





	The Life We Live

**Author's Note:**

> *Thanatos: Greek god of death or personified spirit of death  
> *Nemesis: Greek goddess of divine retribution and revenge  
> *Ares: Greek god of war  
> *Aceso: Greek goddess of the healing of wounds and the curing of illnesses  
> *Jupiter: Roman god of the sky and thunder, king of the gods  
> *Mars: Roman god of war  
> *Odin: Norse god of poetry, dead, runes, and magic. The one you call on when war is being prepared. Basically king of the Norse gods.  
> *Hel: Norse goddess of death, presides over the realm of the dead  
> *Ásmundr: Maddie’s husband at the time  
> *Vidarr: Norse god of vengence  
> *boom: The boom that happened in this scene was caused by either a large cannon or bombard (like modern day morters) which uses gunpowder. This marks the first use of gunpowder in battles which will lead to a shift in the way battles are fought after this point.  
> *feige ammunisjonsforekomster: cowardly ammunition deposit  
> *Jeg må finne ham, jeg må finne Christopher: I have to find him, I have to find Christopher.  
> *faen deg: fuck you

*****DIALOGUE in italics means that it would be spoken in a different language, but I already did way too much research on everything else in this fic that I just didn’t want to put it in those languages and have translations for it. Also, this is not meant to be completely accurate. I just did enough research to get by.****

* * *

**2020 CE**

Athena had seen many a millennium and many men, women, and children die. She had seen the rise and fall of civilizations. She had felt the pain of loneliness and the happiness of community...but she’d never, in her many years of living, seen something like Eddie, Buck, and Chris. She’d never seen this profound of a bond, even between herself and Bobby. After Buck lost Abby and, later, Ali, Athena wasn’t sure he would have let his heart reach out to another person that he could lose...but she was proud of him. He built something that was hard to come by in their way of living. He built a home.

* * *

**724 BCE…….Messenian War**

Twenty years of war, she’d seen twenty years of war. It desolated the country side and left families weeping over their dead. It left pain and suffering in its wake. Athena was tired of it. Her parents were grieving her older brothers’ deaths and barely hanging on as their land was decimated and their crops plundered by both sides. 

They were defenseless. There was no one to protect their home after her dad went to war to provide for the family. Athena was left with her mom, trying to make ends meet so they could survive until the war ended. Gods, she hoped the war would end soon. 

One cool afternoon, there were loud cries, louder than they had ever been. Athena could see the men just over the field. They got closer as the battle spanned. Athena turned to her mother, “ _ This is the closest they have been, Mother.” _

_ “Athena, get away from the door. We will be fine. The Gods will protect us for our offerings.” _

Athena shook her head, turning to her mother.  _ “Is it not Ares* who entices the war?” _

_ “Do not speak ill of the Gods, Child.” _

_ “He is the god of war. He could end it but he does not. He had caused us pain and misery and taken Alexandros and Apollon from us!” _

Athena’s mother shook her head, disappointment showing on her face.  _ “The Gods have their plans. We can not question them.” _

Before Athena could reply, a loud shout was heard and a thump against their home resonated in the room. Athena locked eyes with her mother before moving towards her. The door to their home burst open, men with swords filling the room. Athena stood protectively in front of her mother.  _ “Leave our home!” _

_ “Spartans ripe for the slaughter,”  _ one man called, cheers roused out of the other warriors.

_ “You will leave our home _ ,” Athena growled. 

The first man attacked and Athena reacted on instinct. She dodged the man’s first attack and grabbed a pan her mother had been fixing food in. She slammed the hot iron down on the man’s hands. He screamed as his hands burned, dropping his sword. Without a second thought, Athena rolled to grab the sword, brandishing it and swinging it swiftly, barely wincing when the man in front of her fell, clutching his neck as blood poured out. 

Athena met the next man’s attack head on, sneering at him.  _ “You will all feel the wrath of Thanatos* and Nemesis*!”  _ She cut down the man as easily as the first. 

And so it went, she cut down each man that tried to take over her home. Blood covered her clothes and was painted on the walls around her. Cuts littered her body but she stood tall and took each man head on. A pained cry tore her attention to her mother. She grasped at the wound in her stomach from a man who had slipped past Athena. 

A battle cry on her lips, Athena ignored the man in front of her, turning and cutting down the man in front of her mother. She felt the metal pierce her from behind, but she paid it no mind. She would fight until the end because there was no reason to continue living-not that she thought she’d come out of the battle alive anyway. She had lost too much, her mother, her brothers, probably her father...there was no reason to live. If she could cut down some pigs on the way, she might as well. 

Athena cut down nine more Messenians before she fell to her knees, unable to go farther. She spat blood at the feet of the men that surrounded her. She sneered at the men as they came closer. “ _ Nemesis will send you to your reckoning,”  _ she growled as the sword drew above her head. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Athena woke with a gasp, coughing as she rolled onto her side. Fuck, everything hurt. She groaned as she pushed herself up. She closed her eyes as she took a few breaths through her nose. Images ran through her head- _ men entering her home, refusing to leave, threatening her and her mother, fighting the first man and using his sword to kill him, cutting down Messenian after Messenian, her mother dying, fighting until she couldn’t anymore, the feel of the sword coming down and cutting across her throat.  _

Athena grasped at her neck, expecting to feel a cut, but none was there. Checking over her body, she could see most of the cuts gone from her body. The massive hole in her middle finished its healing right as she looked at it...she watched the skin knit itself together. She should be dead. 

Athena stood quickly, stumbling to her home. She stepped over the bodies and into her home. If she was alive by the grace of Aceso* then maybe her mother was as well. Walking back into her home, she could care less of the bodies that littered the floor, but seeing her mother lying there, eyes open and her mouth open like she had screamed as Thanatos took her. 

Athena felt the cry more than she heard it. She fell to her knees, bringing her mother to her chest.  _ “Why must you leave me, Thanatos? You have taken everything from me!”  _

Athena wasn’t sure how long she sat rocking her mother’s body before she decided to bury her mother. Her mother at least deserved to be put to rest peacefully. Sending a prayer to the gods was second nature as she turned back to her home. On autopilot, she changed her clothes and grabbed a cloth, placing swords and other weapons she thought might be useful in it. 

As she walked away from the home, she sent a prayer to Nemesis,  _ “Let me be the sword with which you deal your revenge on the Messenians _ .” 

* * *

**2017 CE**

Athena did act as the sword of Nemesis for the remainder of the Messenian war. She slaughtered them like they had done to her family. She led charges of Spartans against the pigs and she had won. Along the way, she died a few more times, but she always came back. She became the goddess Athena by the men she led. They followed her without question and treated her with all the respects a goddess should command. Athena doubted she had been the goddess at the time, but if that gave her the masses to defeat the Messenians, she wouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth. 

After the Messenian war, Athena traveled. She couldn’t stay in one place too long or people got too curious. In the first century, Athena traveled all across lands she had never before seen...but she always ended back where it all started. 

She had her first dream of another immortal some two hundred years after she became one herself. A woman with long brown hair coughing, not being able to breathe. A flurry of motion above her as someone wiped her forehead with a cool cloth. Athena had woken up gasping for breath. It was as if she could feel the woman in the dream die. 

At the time, Athena didn’t know what the dream meant. She had no idea why she dreamed of that woman, but she just continued on her journey. She traveled through, at the time, the outskirts of the Pursian empire that were connected to some Greek city states when she found her.

* * *

**503 BCE……...Outskirts of the Achaemenid Persian Empire……..(AKA Bulgaria)**

Athena kept her head down as she walked through the streets of yet another nameless village. She was cursed to walk the Earth alone, unable to die. She thinks that maybe it was because she had questioned the gods during the war with the Messenians. Maybe her punishment for talking badly of Ares was to watch as civilizations rise and fall, never able to fall herself. 

Athena had grown bored with the immortality, her vengeance having died out the first hundred years after she had become immortal. It was lonely, never being able to stay in one place too long. She had learned early on that as the years went on, people began to question and fear that which they couldn’t understand...it was just better, and saved her some pain, if she moved frequently from place to place. She had multiple ‘hide-outs’ across the lands for if she needed weapons, money, or other essentials. She had, again, learned early on that carrying everything you owned only asked for trouble...not to mention that the sheer amount of weapons would severely weigh her down and draw unwanted attention.

Yelling drew her attention as she walked down another avenue in the village. Practically blending into the surroundings, Athena got closer. She could make out a young woman with dark hair being tied to pillars in front of the crowd. Something seemed familiar about her...it drew Athena closer. 

Athena still couldn’t make out her face as she moved closer. The woman held her head down like this wasn’t the first time she’d been strung up to the pillars.  _ “Daimon! Kill the Daimon!”  _

Athena frowned at the words, moving even closer.  _ “We have stoned this Daimon, we have slit her throat! Now we burn her alive to try and finally rid our village of the Daimon!” _

Athena winced as the woman went up in flames. This is why she didn’t stay in one place too long. If they thought she was some sort of demon, they would treat her the same as this woman...try to find a way to kill her...and Athena didn’t want to feel the pain of a thousand deaths that came with the territory. 

Athena planned to leave as the woman burned, but something kept her there, watching the woman. Something was calling to her to make her stay. 

The flames died down after a couple of hours, only the charred remains of the wood and woman were left. Another few hours and the crowd dispersed...but Athena couldn’t leave. Another couple of hours and Athena could see the skin beginning to heal itself and it felt as if the wind had been knocked out of her lungs.

The woman was like her...immortal.

Taking a quick look around, Athena gathered no one was watching, so she hurried over to the woman. She took only a second to hesitate before lifting the body up, ignoring the way the skin felt underneath her hands and how it easily separated from the body in her arms. If she thought about that, she’d be sick. Hurrying through the darkening streets, Athena headed to her hideout across Persian lines. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Halfway out of the village, Athena stole a cart and horse. It would be easier to transport the woman in the cart and allow Athena to make it to her hideout quicker. They made it to the hideout in two days. 

Athena tried to make the woman as comfortable as possible. She left the hideout to gather food and water for when the woman was healed enough to wake up and eat and drink. She spent most of her days keeping vigil as the woman healed more and more. 

By day five, the woman had mostly pink skin with a few still charred areas. Her hair was slowly growing back and Athena could make out her face. It was the woman that she had dreamed about in the last year. The woman who couldn’t breathe and had caused Athena to wake up gasping for air. 

It wasn’t too long before the woman woke with a cry on her lips. Her eyes darted around the room, landing on Athena. Athena stood slowly, throwing her hands out in front of her to show she meant no harm.  _ “I am Athena. I do not want to cause you harm. I am like you.” _

The woman backed up from Athena, her eyes clouded in fear. Athena sighed, picking up a small knife and placing the tip on her palm. She locked eyes with the woman and sliced down her palm. Athena winced at the feeling of the knife dragging through her skin, but she didn’t stop until it spanned her whole palm. She dropped the knife and sat in front of the woman, holding her palm out to her to let her watch as the skin began to knit itself back together. 

_ “You heal like I do _ ,” she whispered.

Athena gave her a small smile.  _ “Yes. I am Athena.” _

_ “Thalia,”  _ she responded after a moment of silence. 

* * *

**2017 CE**

Thalia and Athena spent the next four centuries together. They fought in many battles that they deemed important. They saved many who needed help and they strived to do the right thing. In that time, Thalia-later to become Ali as the centuries went on-became Athena’s best friend. It wasn’t as lonely to walk the Earth for the rest of their immortal lives with someone by their side. Athena hadn’t known how much she needed another person to share the curse of immortality until she had Ali. 

Ali and Athena worked seamlessly together. They truly were two sides of the same sword and they enjoyed each other’s presence, even after their party of two became a party of eight. It was like the two were always on the same wavelength.

Athena sighed as she looked through the photos and portraits of her family. Once the centuries had finally led to photography, the family had gotten pictures taken...only a few. Just to have some memories if one of the members were to die. 

It had been Buck’s idea. None of them at the time knew if they were truly immortal or were just semi-immortal. Buck had convinced Maddie, Maddie convinced Chim who convinced Hen who had convinced Bobby who eventually convinced Athena...so they just had an album of memorable moments...some just snippets in time when cameras were made portable...and Athena treasured them all.

She ran her hand over a laminated portrait documented ‘The OG Squad’ in Buck’s handwriting. It was a picture of Athena, Ali, and Abby standing over the body of an anarchist leader, weapons still in hand. A man who had watched the whole thing had captured it on paper after a particularly grueling mission. Athena had to admit...the ‘OG squad’ had been a great one. 

* * *

**164 BCE…….The Third Punic War**

Athena was always drawn back to Greece. Maybe it was because it was the nexus of the immortals...where the first immortal started or, maybe, it was because even though it had been centuries, Greece was still home to Athena. 

At this point, this was the third war that had been waged in Greece for the Phoenicia cities/states/whatever they were to be called at this time surrounding Greece. Thalia and Athena were fighting on the Greek side, thinking it to be for the betterment of Phoenicia. Their armies were in a lull for a fight, taking the time to catch some sleep while they could.

It was at this time that Athena and Ali were pulled into the same dream.  _ An older woman with strawberry blonde hair was running. They could feel her fear. Blue eyes flash as she turns to look behind her. She was breathing hard and pushing herself to go faster. It isn’t long before the woman is pushed to the ground. Athena could feel where her skin scratched against the stone path.  _

_ The woman was roughly rolled over, coming face to face with her attacker. “Please! Please, do not kill me! I did not-I did not see anything, Sir!” _

_ “Well, we will make sure you saw nothing,” a darker voice stated.  _

_ Hands were around the woman’s neck and she couldn’t breathe. She struggled against her attacker, clawing and fighting, but to no avail. _

Thalia was the first to wake, clawing at her neck. Athena was sitting up right after, gasping for breath.  _ “Did you see the woman as well,” _ Athena asked once she got her breathing under control. 

_ “A woman, blondish red hair.” _

_ “Older than us. The stones of the village she was running on look like that of Carthage, the next village we would march to.” _

_ “Why are we dreaming of the same woman, _ ” Ali asked, hand cautiously going up to her neck as if to check if there was someone else’s hands on it.

_ “Because she is like us. When you died, I dreamed of you. You were in a bed coughing. You couldn’t breathe.” _

Ali nodded. She looked around at the sleeping troops,  _ “what is the plan? We have to find her.” _

_ “We go to Carthage.” _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Athena only felt slightly bad leaving their troops behind. What was more important was finding this woman that had been in their dreams. The trip to Carthage wasn’t long, it only took a few hours by horse. Ali and Athena walked quietly through the village. Most people would be asleep, but they had to steer clear of the soldiers stationed in the village. 

It took time, but they found the woman. She had been moved into an alcove between two huts. She was just sitting up, hand on her own neck when Ali and Athena reached her.  _ “Do not fret, we mean no harm,”  _ Athena stated.

The woman stood carefully, backing away.  _ “Please, we know what happened. We are like you,” _ Ali added.

_ “Get away from me!” _

Athena’s jaw clenched as she looked around to see if any lanterns turned on.  _ “Be quiet. We are here to help. I am Athena, that is Thalia.” _

_ “If-if he sent you, please...I will not say anything,”  _ she whispered. 

Athena sent a quick prayer to the gods before pulling out her knife and quickly cutting a strip down Ali’s arm as she was closer to the woman. The woman screamed, jumping back as Athena put the knife back in its holster.  _ “Was that truly necessary?” _

_ “Thalia, it was my skin I demonstrated on for you, it was your turn.” _

Hearing clattering footsteps, Athena groaned.  _ “I do apologize,”  _ Athene sighed before moving quicker than the woman was prepared for. She took the woman’s head and bashed it into the side of the hut beside her before lifting her into her arms.  _ “Let us go before the soldiers get here.” _

* * *

**2017 CE**

To say their friendship was a rocky start...well, that would be an understatement. It took weeks for Ali and Athena to convince Abby-at the time called Abellona-that yes, immortals were real and yes, she was one of the immortals. 

Abby actually turned out to be a badass after a while. She was a natural at picking up fighting techniques and she really brightened the mood on the more depressing days of being immortal. Most days, Athena missed her and Ali. They’d become family long before Athena even realized that she considered them family. She had cared about them more than anything else in the world. She would have done anything for them.

Then came Bobby. Bobby was the love of her life. She didn’t think she could have ever fallen for a Roman, but as the centuries passed, she came to love him. Bobby, at the time named Euthymius, literally came into her life like a wrecking ball.

* * *

**5th Century BCE……...Roman Empire Expansion…….. (AKA French territory)**

Athena, Ali, and Abby fought through the masses of Roman soldiers, trying to get to the generals. If they could take out the generals, they could then work on ending the expansion with the Roman soldiers in disarray. Athena let out a grunt as a sword impaled her. She went down, and almost immediately got back up again. It didn’t take as long to heal or come back to life after the first few times. Athena was pretty thankful for that when in the middle of one of the bloodiest battles she’d ever fought. 

It was a long journey through the thralls of war before they finally made it to the first few shot callers. Ali and Abby easily took down the first two while Athena had met her match. As she moved her sword, the man would block it easily. He didn’t attempt any attacks on her, he simply blocked and waited. 

The look in the man’s eye made Athena angry. He looked as if he was having fun, not waging a war. In fact, he got off his horse and smiled at her as he dodged yet another of her attacks. They danced around one another, swords clashing but only one attacking.  _ “This is not a game,”  _ she shouted. 

_ “Is it not? We are all game pieces in the eyes of the gods, _ ” he responded, tilting his head. 

Athena anticipated his next block and retaliated by slicing her sword against his thigh. The man had to be either the bravest or stupidest soldier Athena had ever dealt with. He wore no armor other than a shield. 

In seconds, Athena felt a cut form on her cheek as the man’s sword swiped out to gain distance from her.  _ “You should not question the gods.” _

She watched as the man stared at her as her cut healed.  _ “Impressive, though I do not think you are a goddess, even if you may look one. What is life but not a series of one question after the next? Why will my crop not grow? Why has Jupiter* forsaken me? When will Mars* stop playing his game of war?” _

Athena stared at the man. She had thought of the same things when the Messenians had attacked her home, when that war had taken everything from her.  _ “Even so, you willingly play his game,  _ **_Roman_ ** _ , _ ” she spat, bringing the sword down on the man’s head before he had a chance to react.  _ “In the end, you Romans are all the same.” _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ali, Abby, and Athena were back on the battleground gathering what they could from both sides to bring back to their hideout. Swords, knives, money, armor, basically anything that might help them later on. 

_ “Fuck _ ,” a male voice groaned, sitting up amongst the mass casualties. 

Abellona, who had been nearest the man, shrieked and jumped back. Thalia walked over, sword pointed at the man. Athena hissed through her teeth as she got a look at the man,  _ “the gods must be playing a sick joke.” _

The Roman that Athena had been frustrated to no end with, chuckled.  _ “You should not question the gods,  _ **_Greek_ ** **.** _ I am Euthymius and I have a feeling you three can not die?” _

Abby looked to Athena,  _ “he is like us.” _

_ “No, I am not taking in a Roman,”  _ Athena growled out the word. 

_ “You took me in. I was a Roman,” _ Abby pointed out.

_ “You did not try to kill us or wage war against the Greeks, _ ” Ali stated, glaring at the man in front of them. 

_ “Do you want to know why I did not fight you properly, _ ” Euthymius asked.

Athena’s glare hardened,  _ “I would assume it was because I am a female.” _

_ “Then you would be wrong,”  _ the man shrugged.  _ “I did not know what it was at the time, but I felt...connected, if you will, to you. I knew at the time I was supposed to meet you.” _

_ “Well tough luck. We are leaving, Ladies.” _

* * *

**2017 CE**

Bobby had persisted though. He followed Athena, Abby, and Ali all over the world. He didn’t bother them, didn’t speak unless spoken to, but he never left. Athena had hated that the man couldn’t seem to take a hint. She didn’t realize at the time that it wasn’t just pure hate that she felt for the man...but she was actually attracted to him. 

It took Athena a  _ long  _ time to accept the fact that she had fallen for the former Roman soldier. They only started dating after Maddie and Buck had come along (though they had been sharing a bed since 700 CE, but that was no one’s business but their own). They married in the 1800s, just a small thing with Chim as their ‘officiant’. Chim had been the next addition to their group, though, at the time, he had chosen to stick with Bobby who wasn’t in Athena’s group of immortals yet. 

* * *

**87 CE……...Korean Territory**

It was harder to blend in the farther they got away from Greece, but something was pulling Athena and the others towards this eastern country. Euthymius was still following Abby, Ali, and Athena though they had mostly stopped caring at this point. They stopped in a larger village for the night, something feeling right about it. 

Athena assumed that there might be another immortal in the village that would awaken soon. Usually when there was not a battle ahead of them, the feelings Athena got leading her to some place meant that there was an immortal in need of help. 

It happened that night.  _ There was shouting. The smell of smoke and alcohol. Two men facing off against one another _ . Athena woke, confused. She hadn’t seen the faces of the men. She couldn’t identify the immortal.

Abby rolled over in her sleep.  _ Bottles breaking. His heartbeat was speeding up and his anger was palpable.  _ Abby’s eyes snapped open, locking onto Athena. 

_ Rough hands were on him. He groaned as he was thrown through a table.  _ Ali bolted up as a fist had come towards the man’s face.

_ “Did either of you see a face?”  _

_ “No,”  _ they both stated.

Athena frowned.  _ “Okay, what did you see? All I got was shouting, the smell of smoke and alcohol, and I saw two figures looking ready to fight.” _

_ “That makes sense. I heard bottles breaking in the background. I could feel the man’s heartbeat racing and his anger rising,”  _ Abby added.

_ “The other man’s hands were rough. Our guy was trying to get away from him. He was thrown into a table and the last I saw was a fist coming towards my face.”  _ Ali licked her lips before turning to Athena fully.  _ “Euthymius may have seen his face.” _

A knock at the door to their rented room made all three stiffen.  _ “I do not-I do not know what that was but...I felt him die,”  _ Euthymius spoke quietly through the door.

Abby bit her lip, quickly moving to open the door and let the man in.  _ “We have dreams when a new immortal shows up. Usually we all see everything, but this time it was fragmented. What else did you see?” _

Euthymius looked visibly shaken. Considering he’d felt the death of an immortal for the first time, it was understandable.  _ “Oval face, almond eyes, black hair, light beard. The other man shoved the-the leg of the table he broke through the first man’s chest.” _

Abby reached a tentative hand out to Euthymius _ , “I am sorry you had to experience that alone.” _

_ “We need to find him before he comes back to life,”  _ Ali stated. 

_ “By the looks we got today when we entered the village, I doubt it will be easy to search for him,”  _ Athena replied.

_ “He was in a bar right? I saw broken bottles lying around the guy. I could go out and search the bars...it is more natural for a male to go searching for such a place than a lady. I will bring him back here when I find him.” _

_ “After decades of us not interacting with you, why do you decide to help us,”  _ Athena spat.

_ “I hope to one day show you that I am on your side. Let me do this so we can make our exit before anyone is the wiser of immortals.” _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It wasn’t long before Euthymius was back at the inn, knocking on Athena’s door. He glanced around, paying no mind to the blood that dripped onto his clothes. He just hoped no one came out of their rooms while he was standing, holding a dead man. 

The door opened and Euthymius quickly walked in, placing the man down on the ground almost immediately.  _ “I have not seen him move or felt him breathe yet.” _

_ “The first time usually takes the longest. After a few deaths, it gets faster,”  _ Ali shrugged. 

So they waited. Athena, unhappy with the former Roman in her room, only glared at him as they waited. In the back of her mind, she felt somewhat sorry for the man having to have witnessed his first dream death alone. 

A few hours later, a gasp was heard. Immediately Euthymius’s hand was on the man’s shoulder grounding him. The man was speaking, but they had no clue what he was saying. Euthymius quietened the man, giving him a small smile. Pointing to himself he stated,  _ “Euthymius.” _ He motioned to each woman in the room,  _ “Thalia. Athena. Abellona.” _ He pointed to the man,  _ “You?” _

It took the man a minute but he slowly raised a hand to himself,  _ “Yeong-Hwan.”  _

_ “We need a way to tell him what he is,”  _ Abby sighed.

_ “Great idea,”  _ Athena smirked.  _ “And Euthymius needs to start speeding up his healing process.”  _ Athena moved quickly, slicing the knife easily across Euthymius’s neck. As Euthymius dropped, the man started shouting again, trying to back away from the group. 

_ “I think he liked Euthymius...was it truly necessary to kill him?” _

_ “He’ll be fine.” _

It took an hour for Euthymius to sit up, rubbing his neck.  _ “Next time, if I have to be the demonstration, I would like to do it myself.” _

The newest immortal in the room was staring at Euthymius with wide eyes. He said something under his breath. Euthymius gave him a small smile,  _ “Euthymius and Yeong-Hwan, same.” _

Euthymius slowly approached the man, holding a hand out to him. As the man placed a hand in his hold, Euthymius pulled out a small knife and sliced it across the man’s hand. He jerked back, looking at Euthymius in question. Euthymius pointed his look down to his hand which was slowly knitting itself back together.  _ “Eternal,”  _ the man whispered. 

Euthymius tilted his head in question. Yeong-Hwan smiled, bringing his arms around the man. They may not be able to understand one another, but Yeong-Hwan knew he could trust this man...he wasn’t quite sure about Athena.

* * *

**2017 CE**

The language barrier between Chim and the others was difficult at first, but Bobby had started to open up the communication by learning the words Chim used for the basic necessities. In return, Bobby had taught Chim the basic necessities in his own language. In the end, the two used both languages intermittently in a mix of Korean and Greek.

It was pretty easy for Athena, Ali, and Abby to catch on. Chim tended to stay with Bobby over the years. Maybe it was because Bobby was the first to communicate with him and show him kindness...maybe it was because he felt like Bobby had needed more support during that time...but whatever it was, Athena was thankful for it. 

No matter how many times she thought over it, she always felt terrible for making Bobby be by himself for the first few centuries of his immortality. If she could go back, she’d include him in the group way sooner. No one should be cursed to walk the immortal life alone. 

Not even six years after Chim, another immortal came to life. A woman with dark skin, short black hair. She was being condemned by the public, much like Ali had been after she had been seen as immortal...but this felt different. Her sentence was stoning...all because she loved the wrong person. The night they had the dream, all of them had cried, having felt the stones beat her body and cut her open. 

* * *

**100 CE……..Three Years after the dream…….Northern Africa**

Athena was always cautious when picking places to go and battles to wage, but coming on three years of not being able to find the other immortal and having to go through the stoning again and again every time she slept...she was getting restless. 

During this time, the group of immortals traveled in two groups, the men and the women...though Chim and Euthymius were growing on her...not that she’d admit to that.  _ “Athena, we can not just walk into that tribe’s land, _ ” Thalia sighed.

_ “I am tired of dreaming her stoning over and over. I can not keep seeing it and feeling it. So join me or stay here, I do not care,”  _ Athena growled. 

Abellona rolled her eyes,  _ “what Thalia means is that you simply can not barge in there. You always have a plan.” _

Athena shook her head, bringing her sword to rest on her back.  _ “The plan is I am going to scout for the woman in the tribe and hope she is there. If she is, I plan to bring her back here.” _

_ “And what if the tribe follows you here? Or they kill you upon sight and witness your coming back to life,”  _ Yeong-Hwan asked.  _ “Do you not teach us to never let someone see that unless we are in the thick of battle and we kill those who witness it?” _

Athena slammed her hands down on the table in front of the four immortals,  _ “I can not do it anymore! I am going and that is final. Stay here if you do not like it!” _

Euthymius looked over the group before meeting Athena’s eyes.  _ “Going in numbers would draw more attention. We scout before moving in. I will go with you. Once we confirm she is there, then we can come with a plan to bring her back to your hideout. Meanwhile, the three that stay behind can watch our backs and make sure none of the tribe follow us back.”  _

_ “I second Euthymius’s plan,”  _ Thalia replied.

_ “I also support that plan.” _

_ “I am with them.” _

Athena sighed quietly and nodded.  _ “Fine, we scout the area and try to locate the woman from the dream. If she is in no immediate danger, we will wait and come up with a plan to bring her back with us.” _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Watching was easy for Euthymius and Athena. They checked with one another if they thought a woman matched the description from the dream. Four hours in and they still had nothing. That was, until there was a scream from one of the huts. Euthymius grabbed Athena’s arm before she could move towards the scream.  _ “We do not know who screamed or why. If it is not her, we run the risk of outing ourselves or scaring her off.” _

_ “And what if it is her? Whoever it was is in pain and we can stop it.” _

Euthymius shook his head, frown firmly on his face.  _ “In the century that I have known you, you have never been one to rush into things. What is different about this instance?!” _

Athena jerks away, jaw locking. Euthymius persists and Athena snaps,  _ “those pigs think they can control her life! They think they can treat her that way because she is female! They are misogynistic bastards!” _

_ “That is true, they should not have treated her like that, but we can not allow our emotions to interfere with finding this immortal!” _

Athena looked away. She knew that he was right. She hated it, but he was right. The next scream tore through Athena. It sounded so much like the woman’s from their dream.  _ “It sounds like her, Euthymius.” _

Euthymius took a deep breath. He had to admit it did sound like the woman’s screams from the dream.  _ “Fine, we will go check it out, but we wait until dark.” _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Night couldn’t come soon enough for Athena. Each scream from the unknown woman made her want to act. She wanted to make the suffering stop...and that woman was  _ suffering _ . Soon enough, Euthymius and Athena were heading into the tribe’s land and making their way towards the hut they had identified as the screams origin point.

They went undetected and slipped in easily. The sight that greeted them caused their stomachs to churn. There was blood everywhere. A woman in the middle, her chest not moving. Athena moved quickly, checking over the woman. Upon rolling her over, Athena sucked in a breath.  _ “It is her.” _

_ “I will carry her. Let us go,”  _ Euthymius stated, moving quickly to pick the woman up. 

As they were almost clear of the tribe, a war cry went up. They had been spotted. Euthymius groaned to himself as Athena unsheathed her sword.  _ “Go, I will hold them off.” _

Euthymius rolled his eyes, placing the woman down next to a boulder.  _ “We went in together, we are leaving together.” _

And so, they fought together. Athena and Euthymius cut down tribal member after tribal member that came at them. They had underestimated the tribe’s numbers and soon they were outnumbered. Distracted by a gasp, Euthymius turned his attention to the woman he had been carrying as she patted her body down as if looking for wounds. The slip in attention allowed for a sword to be pushed through his chest. Euthymius gasped, collapsing.  _ “Damn _ .”

Athena fought harder as she watched Euthymius collapse. She would need to buy him time to wake again. It was a small price to pay to make sure the three of them were able to walk back to the hideout. 

It took a few minutes before Euthymius shot up. He groaned,  _ “I am tired of dying and coming back _ .”

_ “Try to die less _ .” Athena watched Euthymius roll his eyes before joining the fray again. It wasn’t long before they were able to catch their breaths. Athena turned towards the woman,  _ “you did not run, that is a good sign.” _

The woman cocked her head to the side in confusion, saying something that neither party understood. Taking a page out of Euthymius’s book, Athena pointed to herself,  _ “Athena.” _

_ “Euthymius,”  _ he added. 

Nodding the woman pointed to herself,  _ “Haregewoin.” _

* * *

**2017 CE**

Athena later learned that Hen had been trying to tell them that she recognized them from the recurring dreams she had since she had woken an immortal. Much like with Chim, they had built a mixture of languages to understand one another. They learned that Hen had to watch the love of her life be stoned before her people had stoned her. After her stoning, when she came back to life, she had been sold to the tribe they had found her in where they used her for sacrifices. 

Humanity was cruel, no matter what century they come from. Humanity was savage...Athena understood that from the time she grew up. She understood that due to the Messenian War that cursed her to walk the Earth for the rest of time. Even after all she had seen, none were more savage than the Vikings. 

While two of the sweetest people she’d ever met were Vikings, they still had their tendencies. In the midst of battle, Maddie and Buck turned into completely different people...it was quite scary to watch if Athena had to be honest. The happy-go-lucky siblings turned into fierce-brutish-sadistic killers. 

She could almost understand why the change happened. Those two cared for family more than anyone she had ever met...hurt that and they did a complete 180. They had to in order to survive during their time...even if it wasn’t enough to save them from their first death. 

* * *

**1030 CE……...Norway**

Eyvindr gently pushed his sister’s shoulder.  _ “Magdalena, it will be a few short months and then I will be back. A boy becomes a man in his first battle. It is a rite of passage!”  _

Magdalena rolled her eyes good naturedly.  _ “Whatever you say, Eyvindr.”  _ She pulled lightly at the man’s long blond locks causing him to swat her hand away.  _ “I wish you to be careful. Do not do anything to keep you from coming home.” _

_ “The worst of the war is over, Sister. When we win Stiklestad, the war will be over.” _

_ “Do not be too cocky, Eyvindr. Odin* knows the amount of men that get over zealous and end up with Hel*.” _

Eyvindr smiled brightly, wrapping an arm around Magdalena.  _ “Hel would not want to mess with me. I am too much work.” _

_ “Keep telling yourself that, Eyv.” _

_ “Always Mags.” _

_ “Magdalena, you should be home _ ,” a voice called from behind the pair. Eyvindr had to fight to keep from rolling his eyes at the man.

_ “Eyvindr, may Odin keep you safe in your battles and shall Valhala greet you warmly if it is your time,”  _ Magdalena leaned up to kiss his cheek.

_ “So because Ásmundr* calls, you will spend less time with me before I leave for battle,”  _ Eyvindr scoffed.

Magdalena gave him a pointed look.  _ “I am sorry, but I do have duties to attend to. I love you, Little Brother.” _

Leaning into the hand she placed on his cheek, Eyvindr gave her a small smile.  _ “I will try to be safe so long as you promise the same. I love you.” _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Magdalena never told Eyvindr how bad it got at home. The constant abuse from her husband made her feel small, insignificant. The worst part was that she thought she deserved it. Days locked in a room with no food. Forced to sleep outside some nights. Rough hands constantly placing marks on her skin. She could figure it out...but it didn’t seem to matter as Eyvindr went to war. No matter how much she or her brother believed that he would come home as fine as the day he left, Magdalena couldn’t shake the feeling that Eyvindr would never come back to her...he would die on that battlefield. So she didn’t feel as if it was worth it to ‘figure the situation out’. 

Magdalena didn’t care anymore. She had protected her brother as he grew up. She had hurt any that chose to hurt her brother. She was tired of fighting. Clearly Eyvindr could take care of himself, he didn’t need her anymore. 

After another particularly bad beating from her husband, Magdalena slowly picked herself up from the floor. Everything hurt. Shakily reaching for the table, she pulled herself the rest of the way up. She wished it to be over. She didn’t want to hurt anymore.  _ “It takes a real man to strike a woman _ ,” Maddie sneered at her husband’s back. 

He turned sharply, glaring at her.  _ “I would watch your words and tone, Magdalena.” _

_ “All I do is watch my tone and keep myself quiet. I do not deserve to be treated this way by the man I am to spend the rest of my life with! Only a coward would hit a woman! Only a coward would hide in their home than join the other men on the battlefield!” _

He was quicker than Magdalena was accounting for. Before she knew what was happening, he was on her again. Blow after blow making contact with her head, chest, and stomach. It all hurt...but Magdalena welcomed it. She felt bones crack under the pressure and sent a prayer to Odin that it would be done quickly.

Black coated her vision as it became harder to breathe. She could finally escape. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Athena and Euthymius shot up at the same time. Euthymius was holding onto Athena’s arm as they took deep breaths.  _ “That has never happened before,” _ she whispered. 

_ “They were not speaking any languages I know...but I understood them.” _

_ “I felt as if I was Magdalena...I could feel her inner thoughts as if it were me thinking them.” _

_ “And we have never gotten their backstory. We usually see their death and that is all.” _

Hurried knocks sounded on the door. Athena composed herself, letting the others of their small group in.  _ “What does it mean that the dreamscape changed,”  _ Thalia questioned.

_ “I do not know...it has never happened before.” _

_ “We need to find her. We need to find Magdalena and Eyvindr _ ,” Chim added. 

_ “Correction, we need to find Magdalena. Her brother is not an immortal,”  _ Haregewoin stated.

Chim shook his head,  _ “we have asked why the dream changed. Could it not be predicting the next immortal to be Eyvindr? Say they die around the same time, a couple of days apart. Eyvindr could be another immortal.” _

_ “She did say that she knew her brother would not be returning from battle...she wanted to give up instead of live without her brother _ ,” Abellona sighed.

Athena nodded.  _ “We have never had two immortals in such a short amount of time. It makes sense for the dream to change.” _

_ “ _ **_If_ ** _ Eyvindr is an immortal. We do not know for sure yet.” _

_ “How do we find them,”  _ Haregewoin asked.

_ “They come from the north. The gods they praise are different. I ran into them on our hiatus in the 800s. They are a nasty bunch. We will need to be careful,”  _ Athena began to pack up her things.  _ “We need to move quickly. It is a long journey and the less I have to dream of her death, the better off we are.” _

_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ _

Eyvindr wasn’t dumb, not remotely close. He knew what that asshole of a husband did to his sister. He had tried everything he knew to protect her. He talked with Ásmundr. He tried to get Magdalena to run with him. He had tried getting his father involved (though the man had backhanded him for even asking, saying that it was ‘a man’s duty to keep his wife in place’). He even went to blows with the jackass...but nothing was good enough.

Magdalena said she was fine. She said that she would handle it. She said he shouldn’t worry. He was stupid for believing in her.

Eyvindr was on a break from defending Stiklestad. He had come home to check on Magdalena only to find out she was dead. That the bastard had killed her and buried her. To say Eyvindr lost it would have been an understatement. Armed with a double sided axe in one hand an a mace in the other, Eyvindr set out to do Vidarr’s* will. 

Eyvindr found the coward in a brewery, cackling with friends. _ “Ásmundr!” _

_ “Eyvindr,”  _ the man greeted with a smirk.  _ “Back so soon from the battle?” _

_ “You killed my sister.” _

_ “It was an accident. She slipped on the ice, busted her head open.” _

_ “You fucking liar! You beat her for no fucking reason and then you killed her!”  _

_ “You have a wild imagination, Eyvindr.” _

Eyvindr gave the man a sick smile,  _ “actually, I have been told that I am a bit...how would you put it...crazy?”  _ Before the coward could respond, Buck swung the mace, nailing Ásmundr’s hand to the table he was sitting at. The man screamed as the spikes broke through his flesh.  _ “You see, I tend to go a little  _ **_off the book_ ** _ when people threaten or hurt what is mine. You killed my sister and I am going to enjoy skinning you alive.” _

The axe that Eyvindr was carrying made contact with the neck of one of the bastard’s friends as he tried to help Ásmundr. Eyvindr didn’t blink as he pulled the axe back out and blood spewed everywhere.  _ “Would anyone else like to help this coward?” _

_ “Eyvindr, you will take this outside if you know what is best,”  _ the owner of the brewery called.

Eyvindr nodded to the man, placing his axe back on his back before pulling Ásmundr out of the establishment.  _ “Eyvindr, please...I am sorry, I never meant to hurt Magdalena.” _

Eyvindr growled, pushing Ásmundr towards the forest.  _ “I would believe you if you had not hurt her for over half of your marriage. I am just ashamed I did not do this sooner.”  _ Once in a snowy clearing, Eyvindr pushed the man down on his knees.  _ “You are going to be in as much pain as I can possibly manage to give you just a taste of what you put Magdalena through.” _

Eyvindr slowly pulled the mace out of Ásmundr’s hand, relishing in the screams of the man. He took the mace, wrapping it around both of Ásmundr’s hands so that the pointed ball lightly drew blood from both hands as the man shifted.  _ “She was my wife, I loved her!” _

Eyvindr punched the man, the scream it produced letting him know the mace was doing its job.  _ “You do not beat the woman you love! You do not starve the woman you love! You do not make her sleep in the cold more nights than not!  _ **_You do not kill her if you fucking love her!_ ** _ ”  _ Eyvindr took a steadying breath, placing a smile back on his face.  _ “You see, I am going to do the work of Vidarr, Valhalla be damned. I am going to make you suffer. I am going to have you begging to die and I am going to continue hurting you as you must have done to Magdalena and finally, when you think it can not get any worse, I am going to skin you while you still breathe. Then, and only then, will I kill you.” _

And so that was what Eyvindr did. He tortured the man, blood staining the snow around them red. He beat the man, suffocated him to the brink of unconsciousness, traced the knife gently across Ásmundr’s features, outlining the path to skin him. He broke bones and dislocated joints. He put Ásmundr through all the pain he could think of and then, when he was on the brink of consciousness, he began to skin him alive. Eyvindr took his time, letting the screams wash over him and fill him with the satisfaction of getting justice for his sister’s death. And when the last bit of skin was taken from Ásmundr….that was when Eyvindr killed him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eyvindr left the body as a warning. Anyone who wanted to do what Ásmundr did would end up the same way. Walking through the village, he gathered quite a few looks. He could only imagine what he looked like, blood covering his clothes and skin, red stains following him from his weapons dripping. He was a Viking. He was a Man. 

His reprieve didn’t last long as six men surrounded him right outside his home.  _ “Ásmundr was a friend of ours,”  _ one called.

_ “Pity,”  _ Eyvndr rolled his eyes,  _ “and where were you when I was beating him within an inch of his life, skinning him alive, and killing him? I would have enjoyed the audience.” _

A man almost twice his size muscle wise stepped forward,  _ “why do I not show you how that felt?” _

_ “Oh, are you still defending that piece of shit? After he killed my sister? How about I demonstrate what I did to your friend?” _ The sneer on his face looked more dark with the blood splatter covering his features. Without hesitation, Buck swung the axe from his back and placed two attacks on the man before him. With those two quick attacks, the man’s head rolled on the ground away from his body as it dropped.  _ “That was definitely more satisfying with him standing. I should have made Ásmundr stand when I decapitated him.” _

The next few seconds were filled with tense silence, the other five men staring him down.  _ “I am going to place your head outside my cabin for all to see,”  _ one of the men shouted, the others yelled their agreement. 

As the men attacked, Eyvindr worked quickly. He could feel the cuts he acquired across his body as he fought on, but he was determined to take them all out before they took him. When he died, he wanted to have taken all of these fuckers with him. After taking out two more of them, he lost his axe to a well placed disarmament from one of the attackers. He didn’t let it slow him down, putting more force behind his mace. The next crack of the mace caved in the man’s skill and he went down. 

Using his mace, he wrapped it around the next man’s neck, taking no mind to the biting spikes that pierced his right hand as he pulled it tight against the neck. The breath was knocked out of him as the last man pushed his sword through Eyvindr’s back and into the man in front of him. It was outright stubbornness that kept him standing after having cracked the neck of the man in front of him. 

Eyvindr knew he was going to die. It didn’t matter anymore. The only person he cared about was dead...but he wasn’t going to enter the realm of Hel without taking the last man down with him. As the sword came racing down towards his neck, Eyvindr raised his left arm, blocking out the pain that was sent by the sword sinking into his arm. He grabbed the man’s wrist that held the sword, twisting it until a crack was heard. The man dropped the sword and Eyvindr was quick to pick it up. Not wasting a second, he sunk the blade through the man’s chest and into the ground behind him. 

The dizziness almost took him to the ground when he bent to pick up his mace and axe. He limped his way to his sister’s burial ground. He refused to die without being near his sister.  _ “I’m sorry, Magdalena _ ,” he whispered as he collapsed next to her grave.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two weeks into their journey to find Magdalena, the group jerked awake, many feeling their bodies and staring at their left arm as if there was a wound there.  _ “Holy shit...insane, he is insane,”  _ Chim muttered as he stood and paced. 

_ “Athena once took on a whole troop of soldiers because they invaded her home. I do not think him insane,”  _ Abellona replied gently.

_ “She did not sadistically and brutally murder them. She was quick and merciless. There is a difference,”  _ Euthymius stated.

_ “You have no room to talk, Roman, after what your people did to the Greeks,”  _ Thalia growled.

_ “He did what he needed to do,”  _ Haregewoin spoke quietly.  _ “If I could go back and kill those that stoned my love, I would want to cause them the pain Eyvindr caused those men. He is not insane. He was wracked with guilt and in pain from losing the one person who cared about him. I would have done the same.” _

_ “It does not matter if we agree with his tactics or not. We need to find him and Magdalena. I do not know how long he will be down, waiting to heal, but we might be able to find both of them. He laid down beside her grave, she could be buried alive,”  _ Athena stood.  _ “We should keep moving.” _

* * *

**2017 CE**

Despite being able to understand Buck and Maddie in the dreams, when they met the pair, the language barrier was intact. Buck had been hostile at first, still covered in blood and clutching his weapons tightly. It had enough of the group worried enough to stay back as Athena and Bobby had tried to get through to them. Maddie had taken a little convincing that they weren’t hostile before trying to get Buck to at least put the weapons in their sheaths. It took Maddie two weeks after the language barrier was figured out for her to tell the group more about herself and trust them. It took Buck years.

But when Buck finally trusted them, it was a magical thing. It was like he was a whole new person. That affection they had seen previous to Maddie’s death came back full force. He loved with every ounce of his being and he wasn’t afraid to show it. He was especially fond of Abby, even after they first met (though he wouldn’t have said anything at the time). Abby was the person who got Buck to trust the whole group and he loved her.

So as the siblings’ first years turned into centuries, they both found love. Chimney had been immediately taken with Maddie when they had started having the dreams about her. It didn’t take long for Chim to sweep Maddie off her feet. The two were good together and they were happy. When Buck found out though, he was immediately back into what the group had dubbed ‘Viking Mode’. 

He had waited until Maddie was on a supply run before moving in on Chim. There hadn’t been much talking, but with the weapons in his hands, there hadn’t needed to be. The only thing Buck had said was  _ “if you hurt her in any kind of way, I will kill you until you stay dead and I will find new and inventive ways to do it each and every time.” _ To say Chim was convinced would have been an understatement.

It wasn’t until Abby left that the group was able to see Maddie’s ‘Viking Mode’. Abby had effectively broken Buck’s heart in the 1200s when she broke up with him to travel the world by herself. Maddie was having none of that. The group had been drawn to the room by the clatter that had woken them up. Maddie had just put the sword under Abby’s throat when Chim and Hen walked in. Hen had called for the others to hurry up while Chim tried to talk Maddie down. She had been saying something that the group didn’t understand when Buck walked in. He had knelt beside his sister and said something to her. She had shaken her head, jaw clenched, but Buck placed a hand on her arm,  _ “I am okay.”  _

Maddie had growled and pushed off Abby, but not before at least running the sword down her arm as she got up. The siblings had gotten into a heated argument before Maddie had walked out. Athena could still remember the look on Buck’s face as he watched his sister leave. It was a mixture of pride, love, and sadness. 

The group was lucky to have the siblings on their side.They realized that in 1352 when the group began to participate in the Hundred Years War on the side of the French.

* * *

**1352 CE……..French Territory**

Athena really hated long, suffering wars. She hadn’t wanted to get involved in it, but Robert had insisted, saying that they could make the fighting stop somehow...maybe. She couldn’t tell him no. It seemed that the others didn’t share Robert’s enthusiasm...well, other than Eyvin when he learned of why the war was being fought.

_ “The English always want more land,”  _ Eyvin began,  _ “they are never satisfied!” _

_ “That’s rich coming from the Viking whose people tried to conquer many countries,”  _ Ali replied.

Eyvin turned a glare to the woman,  _ “and Robert is a Roman, by far worse at conquering than my people. We only tried to conquer because we were small in number meaning that England or other, bigger kingdoms would try to take us over. The Romans conquered because they were greedy...much like England.” _

_ “We can debate the morals of conquering others later, there is a battle we need to get to,”  _ Chim stated.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The siblings worked in tandem. Eyvin had taught Madelina everything he knew from his time training in the army. Madelina had learned from the others as well, but she seemed to stick with the tactics her brother taught her...brutal and powerful. They never left each other’s side on the battlefield. 

Left and right adversaries fell at the sibling’s hands. They made a brutal combo, Eyvin cutting the man’s legs from under him while Madelina brandished her sword at his neck, effectively decapitating him. Their attacks were so brutal, in fact, that part of the battle stopped just to watch them. 

Athena, Ali, and Haregew openly stared as their opponents did the same. Athena could see Robert wince as the siblings did another hellish combo. Madelina had made two debilitating cuts to the man’s legs while Eyvin sliced his ax clean through the neck, cleaner than Madelina’s previous decapitation. Chim sucked in a sharp breath as the siblings brought their weapons down on the next opponent’s neck at the same time. 

The siblings were covered in blood, but smiling none the less as they looked at their work.  _ “That was fun, Sister. We need to work on your strength to make one continuous cut through when you attack,”  _ Eyvin clapped her on the back.

_ “Only if we work on your waist and below attacks. Your technique needs work, _ ” Madelina responded. She looked at the group of soldiers just staring at them,  _ “who is next?” _

_ “I think we found their happy place,”  _ Chim whispered to Haregew. 

The woman nodded, looking to Athena as the siblings almost giddily walked to the group of shocked soldiers.  _ “Is it normal to be that happy to kill another human being?” _

_ “Apparently it is for the Vikings,”  _ Athena sighed.

Ali hummed from beside her as she got back into battle,  _ “I think it is charming.” _

_ “That is only because you like the blonde man,”  _ Chim chuckled as he went back to his battle. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

By the end of the day, the group was worn down...well, other than the siblings. The siblings seemed to be wired, bouncing with extra energy...energy they spent working on their techniques while the others tried to rest. They were in their hideout, no real rooms, so they could see the siblings as they laid down to rest. 

_ “Eyvindr, I know you did not just tell your sister to practice her technique on your own neck,”  _ Athena stated in what the group had dubbed her ‘concerned mother’ voice.

A couple of beat of silence and Eyvin replied,  _ “...no…” _

_ “If she is going to practice on you, make it something that will take less time to heal, like your foot or hand _ .”

Eyvin sighed,  _ “yes Athena.” _

Chim couldn’t hold back his snicker at the defeat in his voice. 

* * *

**2017 CE**

As the years went on for the war, the siblings became less giddy and more fierce. They wanted the war to end more than Athena did sometimes. This just made them more brutal in their attacks, not taking the time to ‘play’ with their victims. Honestly, matched against the two vikings, anyone else in the group would fall at their feet. 

Athena had to appreciate the vikings’ attitudes towards doing what had to be done. There had been many times that some in the group couldn’t fathom finishing a job...but Buck and Maddie always did. The job called for killing an emperor and any that supported him, most were on board with that...but not when kids just shy of 12 supported the man. Buck had taken care of the children. Just because he took care of them didn’t mean it didn’t affect him. Buck had been closed off for a few years after that particular job. Maddie had barely left his side after it. 

One job had called for the elimination of a whole castle full of people...some of which had done nothing wrong, only doing their job to serve the royal family. When the group couldn’t go any further with it, Buck and Maddie finished the job. When a job went sideways and there was the possibility of innocents getting hurt, the siblings didn’t slow down, thinking it best to march on before  _ more _ casualties could be introduced to the mix. It was barbaric, but they always got the job done.

Athena would only worry if either of them stopped showing how it affected them. If they started to not care, she would worry...but they always mourned after the fact. Bobby and Athena had asked them one year how they could soldier on during a mission when the others were unsure or stopped completely. The response had come from Maddie, “emotions have to be pushed back in the moment, or else we would not be able to function during the job. Our goal is to end the mission then, and only then, can we think about the outcome and the emotions tied to the mission.” Athena respected them for it. 

Athena wouldn’t think herself callous. She wouldn’t say that all the people they killed were deserving of it...but looking back on history, of how the people they killed or saved turned out, generations later, it gave her hope that even if the siblings took it too far (as it seemed sometimes), that they were actually helping out humanity. She hadn’t shared it with the group yet that sometimes three or four generations later, the effect of their acts showed. By saving a Byzitine prince on their raid of a castle, Buck had assured that the fifth generation son disassembled the empire (only for the Ottoman Empire to sweep in and take it and one of their members). By killing the king in England and allowing the next runner up to become king, three generations later, the kingdom became freer (even if it was still a monarchy, there was at least more freedom of religion). 

They were immortal because they helped humanity survive. They bettered humanity.

“What are you looking at, ‘Thena,” Buck asked, plopping next to her.

Athena smiled lightly, passing the photo album over to him. “Just looking at our memories.”

A sad smile spread across Buck’s face as he looked at the photos containing Ali and Abby. “I miss them,” he admitted.

Athena ran a hand through his short hair in a loving way, “I know. I do too.”

* * *

**1453 CE……...The Fall of Constantinople**

Abigail had rejoined the group at the beginning of the fifteenth century. Having finished her soul searching. To say it was tense in the beginning would have been an understatement. Eyvin was still hurt by the fact that she left him, telling him that she needed to see the world for herself, without another immortal influencing her thoughts. 

Athena and Ali were happy to see her, though less so as it became apparent that Eyvin was having trouble adjusting to her being back. Now, midway through the fifteen century, Eyvin would barely frown as Abigail weaved back into their lives, always wanting to know about the time she had missed with them. 

Even as they prepared for the next attack of the Ottomans, Abigail was trying to catch up on Eyvin’s life.  _ “If you have not noticed, we are in the midst of a siege _ ,” his reply was cold. 

_ “It is not as if we will stay dead if they attack us while we chat. I missed you, I just wanted to catch up.” _

_ “We can do that later when we are not being attacked, _ ” Eyvin growled and pushed away from his spot on the wall. He moved farther left, towards Robert. Before he could ask the man his question, a loud  _ boom* _ was heard. Seconds later, the wall shook as dust and bits of rock flew into the air. 

Eyvin had been knocked onto his ass, head hitting the back of the wall. He rubbed it, somewhat frustratedly,  _ “what the fuck was that _ ?!” His ears were still ringing as Robert replied.

_ “I do not know, but we need to check on the others!”  _ Another  _ boom _ and that was all Eyvin remembered.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eyvin woke to smoke and dust tickling his throat. He groaned, rolling over and pushing himself up. He hissed as something scratched at his back. Looking around, he spotted Robert, Athena, and Haregew moving a large piece of stone off someone. Hearing a groan to his left, he turned to see his sister. He helped her up before making his way over to the others.

_ “That fucking hurt _ ,” Chim was saying as they stopped by Robert.

_ “Athena,”  _ Ali’s panicked voice reaches their ears. Eyvin was the first to respond, jogging over to her. She was standing over Abigail’s body.  _ “She should have woken by now. It has been hours!” _

_ “Maybe there was a lot of damage to repair. She will wake up _ ,” Eyvin muttered,  _ “she has to wake up. She is an immortal.” _

_ “Constantinople is gone, we should get out of here. Eyvin, gather Abigail.” _

* * *

**2017 CE**

Abby never woke up. It was the first time one of them had actually died. Until that point, they hadn’t known that their kind could die. Buck had blamed himself, though there was nothing he could have done. Athena had felt guilty that it wasn’t her...she had been around the longest, it should have been her.

“I’m proud of you, Eyvindr,” Athena whispered.

Buck jolted, almost a melinia since he had been called by his birth name. “Why? Because I haven’t died recently? Or caused any trouble?”

Athena chuckled, “partially...also because you haven’t let this life extinguish your flame. You’re still you. After Ali and Abby...I was worried for you for a long time.”

Buck nodded slowly, “you should be proud of Maddie. She’s the one who kept me sane.”

“I am proud of her...but I’m also proud of the person you’ve become.”

The next page of the album contained portraits taken of the crew. He ran a finger down Ali’s picture. “Did I tell you that the first time she told me she loved me was right before we moved in to take down Cornwallis? She told me that she wished we had met under normal circumstances...wished we could have grown old, had children together.”

“Evan,” Athena brought him into a side hug. “I’m so sorry.”

* * *

**1779………….The Revolutionary War…………Battle of Yorktown**

“I told you, they always want more land,” Evan stated.

“It is the folly of man,” Robert sighed. 

“You do realize we are supporting people who want this land for themselves then will probably want more later on and will push for more land, right,” Thalia asked. 

“It is a never ending cycle, Thalia,” Athena responded. 

Chimney began to pass out their weapons, laughing quietly at the looks on Evan’s and Madeline’s faces. “I miss close combat,” she stated.

Evan huffed in agreement. “There is no honor in battle anymore. Everyone aims with these feige ammunisjon forekomster*.”

“You are just sad you can not bash someone’s head in,” Chimney rolled his eyes. 

Evan turned on him, “I do not bash their heads in. I cut them off.”

“Because that is so much better,” Hare replied. 

“I would have to agree with Evan and Madeline...I do miss swords clashing in battle,” Robert disclosed. 

“This is a bayonet, a knife can be attached to the tip of the gun. You will still be able to attack close up, My Vikings,” Athena huffed. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evan was checking his gun  _ (“it is not as satisfying as my mace or axe, Chim” _ ) one last time before the group headed out to the battlefield. “Are you almost ready, Evan,” Thalia asked.

“I would be if you gave me a good luck kiss,” he chuckled.

“Of course. How could I forget?” She leaned in, taking his face in her hands and kissing him sweetly. “Do be careful out there, Evan, I love you too much to watch you die again.”

Evan froze, eyeing Thalia. “You-what?”

“I love you, Evan. Most of the time I wish we had met under different circumstances...that we would be able to grow old together, have kids, have a normal life. I want that life with you.”

Evan kissed her again, smiling into it. “Maybe we could try the ‘normal life’ after this. Maybe we can not grow old, but we can try everything else like helping kids on the street. I love you, I want that with you.”

“I am going to hold you to that.”

“Please do. Be careful and I will see you on the other side, My Love.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There was much rejoicing as Cornwallis surrendered. Bloodied and bruised ( _ “yes I would have preferred my mace. These fuckers got close enough for it” _ ), Evan clapped Madeline on the shoulder. She hugged her brother tightly. Caught up in the happiness of the war being over, Evan blurted it all out, “Thalia and I are going to separate from the group for a bit. We are going to help children left on the streets, have a real house to ourselves...I love her Mads and she loves me!”

Madeline pulled her brother close again, laughing. “Of course she loves you! I am happy for you, truly. You deserve happiness, Evan. Maybe Chim and I will join you!”

It wasn’t until later, when they all convened at their hideout that Evan realized something was wrong. Athena and Robert were more solemn than after a job well done deserved. It was enough to dim the smile on Evan’s face. “Is everything alright,” Hare asked.

Robert looked at the ground before taking a deep breath and looking back up, directly at Evan. “Thalia died during the battle.”

Evan’s smile dropped completely and he flinched back as if he had been struck. “What? No. It is just taking her longer to heal. She will wake up.”

“Evan-”

“Athena, she is going to wake up! I love her, she is going to wake up!” 

“ _ Eyvindr please...I am so sorry _ ,” Madeline whispered to him, but Evan shook his head.

“ _ No _ ,” his voice broke. He harshly wiped at his eyes as tears fell.  _ “NO! Not again! We were-We were,”  _ Evan broke down. He collapsed to the ground much like he had the day he first died. 

* * *

**2017 CE**

“I’m sorry I left,” Buck gave Athena a small smile. “We had just,” he sighed, “I decided to carry out our plan...it was the least I could do.”

“I understood, Buckaroo. I would have left too if I didn’t have the others looking to me for direction...plus you gave me some solid advice.”

Buck chuckled quietly, “to marry the hell out of Bobby...I remember.” 

“And I did marry the hell out of him.”

“Maddie told me it was a beautiful ceremony. I am truly sorry I didn’t make it.”

Athena leaned down to catch Buck’s eyes, “no one expected you to come back. You were healing after a trauma had been dealt to you...really after two traumas. No matter what you miss in this life, we won’t blame you so long as you’re looking after yourself.”

Buck nodded, “I know, but that doesn’t mean I don’t still feel bad about it. I had been rooting for both of you to marry since the 1100s.”

“Oh, we both know.”

It’s not long after that when Athena and Buck head to bed but they get anything but restful sleep.

* * *

**2017 CE……….Los Angeles, California**

“Bye Abuela! See you tomorrow!” A child’s voice called. An older woman smiled, waving the younger boy off. “Can we get ice cream on the way home, Dad?” 

“Sure, Mijo,” a deeper voice called. The view changed to a man just a little older than Buck with light stubble covering his face. His eyes crinkled when he smiled at his son. 

The man and young boy got into a truck, the older man helping the boy into the seat and buckling him up. “Daaaaaad, I’m thirteen! I can buckle myself!”

The man chuckled, “I’m sorry, Mijo, old habits die hard.” The man closed the door with a chuckle, walking around to his door and hopping in. “Any preferences on ice cream?”

“Dahlia’s!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Maybe feeding his thirteen year old ice cream before bed time wasn’t the best idea in the parenting book, but Eddie had promised that he would parent Chris his own way. He promised he would always make sure his kid was happy...so if that meant a couple of ice cream trips before bed every once in a while...well no one other than his son needed to know. 

Eddie had let Chris get himself situated in his bed ( _ “Daaaad, I don’t need to be tucked in! I’m thirteen!” _ ) and had given ample amount of time for Chris to fall asleep. He silently walked into the room, smiling down at his son. He sat on the ground next to Christopher’s head, gently running hands through his curls. He may have failed him when he was younger, but that didn’t matter now...now, he knew his son understood somewhat what had happened when he was younger with his dad off to war, his mother having trouble taking care of him, his grandparents wanting to take him from his father...but they were happy now. Christopher was happy and that was all that mattered. 

Eddie was content to watch him all night. His son. His beautiful, charming son. Eddie didn’t know what he’d done to be this kid’s father, but he was grateful. With one last sweep of his hand and a light kiss to the forehead, Eddie left for his own bed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Okay Mijo, you ready to blow this place,” Eddie asked, glancing at all the stuffed animals they had acquired on their trip to the aquarium.

“Yeah!”

Eddie chuckled as they made their way to the car. “Have you given any of your new friends names?”

“Not yet. I want to make sure it’s the perfect name for them!” 

Eddie nodded, a smile never leaving his face. He was about to say something before the blare of a horn was heard. Eddie glanced up, eyes widening-

* * *

**2017 CE………...Bulgarian Hideout**

The majority of the group sat up gasping. “Damn, another one? I thought we were done adding to the group,” Chim sighed. 

“What did we see?”

“Wait, Evan’s not up yet. Shouldn’t have have woken with us,” Maddie asked. 

“Maybe he didn’t have the dream,” Hen suggested.

“No, we would all have the dream. We always have the dream together,” Bobby replied. 

“We didn’t see them die,” Athena muttered. 

“It seems like they were about to get hit by a car, Athena...not much left to the imagination,” Chim replied.

“But we always  _ see _ their death. Feel it. We didn’t this time...what if Buck is dreaming of their death?” 

Maddie shook her head, “why would he be the only one to experience it? The last time, I experienced his death and you told me you all experienced it too!”

Bobby sighed, “there was one time when only one person experienced the death of one of our group members...it was when Chim became the new immortal. I wasn’t part of the group and Athena wasn’t planning on making me part of the group. I experienced his death when the others didn’t.”

It was silent for a moment before Hen spoke up, “but he is part of the group. He shouldn’t be going through it alone. What if-”

_“Christopher!”_ Buck sat up screaming. A sob escaped his throat, holy fuck, what had that been? “Jeg må finne ham, jeg må finne Christopher*,” he babbled as Maddie clutched onto his arm.

“Shh, Evan...take a breath,” Maddie coaxed. She held him tightly, Evan holding on just as tightly. “What you experienced is the death of the next immortal...I’m so sorry you had to do it alone.”

Buck shook his head, “Eddie, Eddie...I have to-to find Eddie and-and Chris-Christopher. I have to find them.  _ Shit Maddie, fuck...I need-I need- _ ”

Maddie rested her forehead against Buck’s, placing one of his hands on her chest,  _ “I need you to follow my breathing Eyvindr. _ ” Another sob wrecked his body, but Maddie didn’t let up. “Breathe, Evan. We’re going to find them, I promise.”

Once the Viking was calmed down, Athena walked over to him slowly. She knelt in front of him and gently spoke to him, “Evan...I know this is going to be hard, but we need to know what you saw.”

Buck released a shaky breath but nodded. “I-They were, they were leaving the aquarium. Christopher had-he had so many stuffed animals from the trip,” a faint smile formed on Buck’s face, “Eddie...Eddie was asking him if he had named any yet but Chris-Chris wanted to pick out the perfect names for them. A horn…” Buck took a deep breath, “It was-it was too close, Eddie couldn’t-Chris didn’t,” his breathing began to pick up, “and they just-they flew... _ oh gods _ .”

Bobby’s reassuring hand landed on his shoulder, squeezing it as if he could take the pain Buck felt through the contact. “Was there anything identifying about the place,” he asked.

Buck shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut. “Uh,  _ fuck, _ may-maybe. It-it was sunny, it was hot...sweltering, that’s why they went to the aquarium instead of the beach. They had just moved there, trying to get away from-from his parents because they wanted-they wanted to take Christopher away from him. Eddie wasn’t going to allow that to happen. I-” he paused as a license plate flashed through his head. “The person that hit him, the car had a California tag.”

Buck got up, beginning to pace. He had to remember more. California was a big place, it could take them close to a year or more to track down the two immortals-because they were both immortal, Buck refused to believe that one of them wasn’t. “The aquarium...LAX-The LAX Aquarium!”

Bobby patted him on the back, “you did good, Buck. We’re going to find them.”

* * *

**2017 CE……...Los Angeles, California**

Two flights and a bus ride later, and Buck was anxious. It had been twenty hours since the dream, what if they had woken up already? What if someone saw them? “Hey,” Maddie whispered as they walked to the nearest morgue to the aquarium, “it’s going to be fine. We’ll find them and take them back to the safehouse.” Buck could only nod silently as he shook his hands out. It had been decided that Maddie and Buck would go retrieve the immortals while the others waited at the safe house. 

Breaking into the morgue had been surprisingly easy. The coroner seemed to be out on a call and the guard was immersed in a football game or something on his phone. Maddie stayed back, making sure no one came in on him while he went to investigate the body storage. 

The lockers served up no Eddie or Chris, so he moved on to the walk in freezer storage. Buck barely let the dead bodies affect him as he searched for the two Diazes. A quiet whimper caused him to stop in his tracks, “I’m here to help,” he called quietly, “let me know where you are.”

“H-h-help m-my da-dad,” a small voice responded. 

Buck quickly walked over to the voice, seeing Christopher curled up next to his father. Thankful that Maddie had thought to bring clothes for the two, Buck quickly helped Chris into a set of warm clothes. He still shivered, but he looked less cold by the time Buck affixed a beanie on his head. “Y-you’re the-the m-man from th-the dream,” Chris whispered.

“One of a few, buddie. Let’s-”

“Christopher!” Eddie shot up quickly, eyes darting around the room before landing on Christopher and Buck. “Chris-are, are you o-okay?” 

“I’m fi-fine, Dad...cold...but th-the man fr-from the dr-dream is here t-to help.”

Buck gave the man a small smile, “I have clothes and somewhere we can go to talk about what happened.” 

“I need t-to get Chris to-to a hospital. I-”

“I’m going to get straight to the point because I’m pretty sure you’ll both die of the cold if we wait much longer to get you out of here. You both died when the car hit you. You’re both immortals, like me and my friends. We need to get out of here before the coroner comes back or my sister gets caught.”

“Y-you’re ins-insane.”

Before Buck could reply, Chris spoke up, “you-you weren’t br-breathing be-before.”

The door to the freezer creaked, “ _ Evan,”  _ Maddie hissed, “we need to go,  _ now _ .” 

Buck turned back to Eddie, face closing off, “we can debate whatever you want later, whether I’m crazy or not. Right now, you’re coming with me even if I have to carry you over my shoulders to do it. Get dressed, we don’t have much time.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Buck did end up having to carry Eddie out of the morgue. The man couldn’t stand by himself. Maddie had picked up Christopher and they had made quick work of getting the hell out of there. Eddie had protested the entire way, saying that they needed to go to the hospital and he had to call his family. Buck bit his tongue until he couldn’t anymore. “To them, you’re dead Eddie. Both of you.” 

Buck couldn’t meet the man’s eyes. He didn’t know what he could say to make that any better...sure he hadn’t really had to worry about leaving people behind when he died...but that didn’t mean that he didn’t know how it felt. He had witnessed what Ali’s and Abby’s deaths did to the whole family, he could only imagine what it would have felt like if they were blood relatives. “If we were dead, we wouldn’t be having this conversation,” Eddie growled. 

Buck rolled his eyes, “Mads, we’re stopping,” Buck called. The abandoned building wasn’t the best place to have this conversation, but he doubted Eddie would allow them to just drag him and his son to their safehouse two hours away without the full story, especially as he regained some strength.

He manhandled Eddie to the ground, Maddie gently depositing Christopher next to him. “Are you sure this is the best time? We don’t have the pictures with us or anything,” she questioned quietly. 

“He’s not going to let us take him two hours away without some explanation.”

“You could, you know,” Maddie made a twisting motion with her hands, “and then we could explain with the proper tools.”

“We haven’t even explained it to him yet...well, he doesn’t believe it yet, I’m not just going to do that in front of his son,” Buck hissed. Buck turned to Eddie who was glaring between the siblings. “Okay, I’m going to try once more to explain this with words, if that doesn’t work, Maddie is going to demonstrate...at which point you may want to make sure your kid isn’t watching because it won’t be pretty.”

“Because she-she would kill you to-to prove we’re im-immortals,” Chris asked.

Buck winced slightly and muttered a quiet, “yes.” As Eddie moved to get up, Buck sighed, “stop, please stop. You aren’t normal people. You should have dreamed of us. I know Christopher did because he told me that I was the man from the dream. You would have dreamed of our first deaths-and I’m sorry for how violent mine was-while we dreamed of your deaths. You were at LAX aquarium coming home with a lot of new stuffed animals. The car came out of nowhere and hit you both, you had no time to react. Christopher’s skull was caved in, he didn’t survive. Your back and neck were broken, you hung on for a few minutes, but I felt the last breath you took. You both died. Now you’re like us and I’m sorry you are. It fucking sucks, but there’s nothing you can do about it. Your friends and families? They’re already grieving for you. They already know you’re dead. You can’t just pop back up in their lives. You can’t let anyone know what you are. Please, we can prove everything if you let us take you to the safehouse. You’ll meet the others you dreamed about.” 

Eddie shook his head. “You’re-you’re lying! We’re not-”

Buck let out a long sigh. “Chris should look away now,” Buck stated as Maddie walked up behind him. She winced as she heard the crack of her brother’s neck as she broke it. Buck collapsed and Maddie again, winced in sympathy. 

Eddie couldn’t move. The woman had just killed that man- _ Evan _ . Holy shit.

A few minutes passed and Eddie could only watch as bones moved around in Evan’s neck. As soon as they all clicked back into place, Buck shot up, rubbing the back of his head. “You couldn’t have cushioned my fall,” he looked at Maddie.

“Sorry, I had just broken my own brother’s neck, I was a little out of my mind.”

“You were dead,” Eddie whispered, eyes wide, Christopher now peaking out as well. 

Buck nodded, working his neck out. “Yep. That happens sometimes. We die and we get back up...most of the time,” he muttered the last part to himself.

It was quiet and Buck brought his eyes to Eddie and Chris. “We died,” Eddie spoke slowly after meeting Buck’s eyes.

Buck nodded, licking his lips before looking at the ground, “one of the worst experiences of my life, not being able to do anything.” 

Another bout of silence before Eddie stood up, Chris leaning on his side. “I have...I have questions...but-you said...you said there was a safehouse?” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Maddie led the group into the safehouse. Buck had ended up carrying Christopher as Eddie hadn’t had the strength to yet as he was recovering from the cold. “You actually got them to come back here, that’s surprising,” Chim called as they made their way to the living room. 

“I’m charming,” Buck deadpanned as he sat Christopher next to his father and retreated to the far end of the room. 

“You had Maddie snap your neck to sell it, didn’t you,” Chim smirked.

Buck rolled his eyes as Maddie giggled, “faen deg*.” There was no heat behind the insult.

“Behave,” Athena eyed the two men as she entered the room with a photo album. She smiled at the two boys on the couch. “My name is Athena, you’ve met Buck and Maddie. Chuckles over there is Chimney. Hen is seated by Chim and Bobby will be joining us shortly. I’m assuming the siblings gave you a run down of what was going on?”

Eddie nodded quietly whilst Christopher perked up some. “Yeah! I saw them in a dream and then Bucky saved me and Dad! He even demonstrated!” 

“Did he now,” Athena turned to look at Buck who looked down in embarrassment, cheeks turning pink. 

“Yeah! We watched his neck pop back into place!” 

“Mijo,” Eddie called warily. 

Athena gave them a small smile, holding out the photo album to Eddie. “Well, if you need more proof, it’s all here.” 

Eddie flipped the album open after a moment of hesitation. Immediately he was met with a pencil portrait of Buck and Maddie. Maddie’s hair was long and curly, carefully framing her face. Buck had longer hair pulled back into a ponytail. He had a light beard with a bright smile on his face as he looked at his sister. The next portrait was of Athena and another man. Eddie assumed that was the Bobby Athena had spoken of. The man’s arms were wrapped around Athena’s waist, a smile on his face. His hair, like Buck’s, was drawn back into a ponytail. Athena was resting against the man, a small smile on her face as she looked up to his face. “When were these done,” Eddie asked quietly. 

“Buck and Maddie had theirs done in 1650 near London, England. Bobby and I had ours done in Italy in 1700 right before we left for the colonies.”

Eddie nodded absentmindedly at the information. He stopped on a portrait of Athena and two other women. They had weapons in their hands, standing over a lifeless body. “Who are these people,” he asked, turning the album to Athena. 

She smiled wistfully at the portrait. “My best friends. Thalia and Abellona. They were the first two immortals that I came in contact with after walking centuries by myself. We were always pretty tight knit.”

“What happened to them,” Chris questioned.

“They died,” Buck ground out, arms crossed over his chest, jaw clenched. “They died and didn’t get back up.” 

Before anyone could say anything, Buck turned and stalked out of the room. He almost ran Bobby over on his way in. He stumbled in and turned to watch as Buck walked towards the door. Said door slammed on his way out. Eddie licked his lips, turning to Maddie, “is he alright?”

She gave him a tight smile, “they’re a sore subject for all parties involved. He just misses them.”

Eddie nodded, he could understand that. He flipped through more portraits before getting to grainy black and white photos of the group. They were just little moments in time. Chris stopped him as they got to a colored photo. It was of Maddie, Buck, and Chim. All three were smiling at the camera. The next picture had Buck and Chim kissing Maddie’s cheeks while Maddie smiled brightly at the camera. Maddie’s hair was slightly shorter than the portrait from before while Buck’s came to his shoulders in waves. Chim had slightly longer hair than he did now...but they all looked happy.

The next picture was of Hen and Chim, the latter having something splattered all over his face while Hen was cackling at his side. Bobby smiled as he looked over at the photos. “This was when those portable cameras first came out. Buck absolutely loved the things. He took one with him everywhere and was always taking photos like these.”

“He’s talented,” Eddie murmured. 

* * *

**2018 CE……….Pakistani Safe House**

Eddie scowled at his best friend as he flitted around the room. “Buck, seriously. Talk to me.”

Buck sighed, shaking his head. “We’ll be a few days at most. If we don’t come back in three days, you’ll need to move to the next safehouse in India. It’s all in the photo album. As soon as we can, we’ll join you.”

“Buck-”

“Make sure no one follows you. You’ll have to make sure to get in and out without detection. You can’t be caught on cameras and you can’t be stopped by local law enforcement agencies. Everything will pop off fast and that will make it dangerous for you and Chris. If all else-”

“Evan-”

“-fails then there is enough C4 and weapons here and at the other safehouse for you to make a messy but quick retreat. We’ll be fine. I’m worried about-”

_ “Eyvindr _ ,” Eddie placed his hands on both of Buck’s shoulders, leaning in close to catch the man’s eyes. “We will be fine. I want to know if you’re alright. Everything has moved so fast in the past few weeks...I’m worried about you.” 

Buck gave a small smile to Eddie, “yeah...yeah, I’m good. It’s just...it’s been fifty years since I’ve done something like this...guess I’m just worried about being a little rusty.”

Eddie returned the smile, running his thumb on Buck’s neck, “you’ve been around since the year 1002, I believe you’ll be fine Evan.”

Buck laughed and nodded. He would be fine, he knew he would….but he was worried about leaving Eddie and Chris by themselves. It was understood that one of them would need to stay with Chris while the others went on this mission...he was just worried because of how badly this could go south and end up hurting Eddie and Chris in the process.

“You two ready,” Hen asked as she entered the room, Christopher following quickly behind her. 

“As we’ll ever be,” Buck responded, fastening his axe to his back. 

“You’re not seriously bringing that thing, are you,” Chim asked as he and the others trickled in.

Buck rolled his eyes, “I trust my axe more than I trust these cowardly guns.”

“Don’t worry, he will be using the cowardly gun, at least at first,” Maddie responded, looking at hers with disdain as well. 

“All you Vikings are the same...can’t appreciate technological innovation,” Chim sighed.

“Remind me who saved your ass in Russia with their ‘old tech’ when that EMP took out all the technology you were using at the time,” Buck called as he picked up his own gun. 

Bobby chuckled, “that was a spectacle. You brought it up every day for the next few months.” 

“Damn right I did. He didn’t appreciate me then, I deserve that appreciation,” Buck responded. 

“We appreciate you, Eyvindr,” Athena replied with a sly smile on her face. “I assume you went through everything with Eddie?”

“Four times,” Eddie sighed.

Athena nodded, “then let’s get moving. We’ll see you soon.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Out of everything he’s seen since he became an immortal, out of everything he’s fought against, terrorist cells had to be the worst. He hated them with a devout passion. He especially hated when they took hostages because, while he could come back from the bullets the groups sent his way, those hostages couldn’t. That’s why, when the terrorist group started to move their hostages, Buck didn’t hesitate to jump into the back of the cargo van. 

Buck could see his family getting smaller and smaller as they continued to fight with the ground troops of the terrorist organization. This hadn’t been part of the plan. Their intel had said that it was a subgroup of the terrorist organization responsible for fifteen bombings across Europe. They were supposed to be able to take out the group, get more intel, then move onto the bigger fish. 

It seems they found the bigger fish first. And it wasn’t like Buck was going to just let them take his sister and other innocent people.

Buck spent what time he had in the moving vehicle to assess each hostage. None seemed to terribly hurt, other than his sister who wasn’t waking up. He was assuming that someone was tracking him and Maddie...he had to assume someone was tracking them because he didn’t know where they were going, how many hostiles there were. He didn’t know if he could save all the hostages and take down the assholes that took them. Not to mention that the longer he and Maddie stayed with these bastards, the more likely it was that their photos would get circulated and that would put their whole family at risk.

The vehicles were beginning to slow and Buck tensed. Using what little Arabic he knew, he calmed the hostages. _ “It’s alright. Stay low to the floor of the vehicle.”  _

Gripping his axe, he pulled it from his back, gun long forgotten after the initial breach of the first facility. As soon as the vehicle stopped completely, Buck was waiting at the opening, listening as footsteps came closer. He’d do his best to protect the hostages. As soon as the covering was pulled away, Buck swung his axe clean through the man’s neck. He didn’t stop to watch the body fall as he moved onto the next man as he was grabbing for his gun. He barely registered the pain as a bullet tore through his thigh. He wasn’t going to stop. He was a Viking for fuck’s sake. One of the strongest types of people around. He was going to keep going until they killed him and then some.

He grunted as he fell to one knee, blinding pain racing up his back as he looked slightly to see the bullet wound in his knee...he likely had a shattered knee cap. Buck took a breath, standing up again, a sneer on his face as he cut the next person down. He grabbed the gun from the man, aiming with one hand to shoot and the other swinging his axe at the next closest coward. It was like his body was on autopilot. He could feel the wounds he was getting, but he couldn’t stop. He kept going, because the people in that vehicle needed him to clear the way for them...to protect them.

He was a Viking, the most savage the world had to offer. He would not be taken down by a few bullets.

As his borrowed gun ran out of bullets, Buck cursed and threw it to the ground. Swinging the axe at another unfortunate man, he reached into his pocket, feeling the grenade he had snuck in before leaving the safehouse. He needed to get enough of them corralled together for that to work. He grunted as another bullet clipped his right shoulder.  _ Fuck it,  _ he thought. 

Buck charged.

Guns were the cowards way out. They were for the people who couldn’t handle hand to hand combat. He was fucking tired of it. He missed  _ real _ battles. His injuries didn’t matter, so long as he could make sure the hostages were safe...he’d wake up afterwards anyway. Halfway through slicing and dicing the men around him, Buck heard another vehicle approach. Immediately as he saw it, the machine gun started. Fucking guns.

Seeing his opportunity, Buck pulled out the grenade and as the truck got within throwing range, he unclipped the pin and threw it, watching it sail into the bed of the truck carrying more men. He only had a second to be satisfied before the blast blew him off his feet. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ringing was the first thing Buck noticed as he started to come to again. His head was ringing, the light too bright having him shut his eyes again. Buck slowly rolled onto his side, groaning. “By Odin,” he muttered as the pain radiated through his body. He pushed himself up, ignoring the pain. Once standing, he took stock of the situation. The blast had taken care of the last of the forces of the group. At least that was one last thing to have to think about. Buck stumbled towards the vehicle he came in, looking in the back, “ _ everyone alright?” _

He got murmured ‘yes’s from the group, Maddie still out as it seemed. Buck nodded. Alright, he’d take the vehicle and he’d...He’d what? Try and find the others? He didn’t even know which direction they came from. Buck sighed, he didn’t really have any options. He could take the group further towards the terrorists rather than away.  _ “My friends. They come _ ,” Buck’s broken Arabic didn’t seem to appease any worry from the group. 

A young girl pointed to Buck’s stomach, “ _ hurt _ ” she stated. 

Buck looked down, eyes widening. “Damn. That’s gonna be a bitch to heal.” A large piece of shrapnel was protruding from his lower abdomen. He took a deep breath, looking away from it. If he pulled it out now, he’d die and come back to life...but if he took it out later, when these people were safe, he wouldn’t have to worry about more terrorists showing up while he was incapacitated. 

Buck nodded again. He’d wait. It would be fine, he had the will of a Viking, he was a fucking Viking, he could wait until Athena and the cavalry arrived. He moved slowly towards his abandoned axe. He’d need that if more jackasses showed up. He swung it absentmindedly in his hand as he walked back over to the vehicle. He would be fine. Maddie would be fine. They’d make it back to the safehouse, Chris would tell them of everything he did with his dad, and they’d rest up. Buck wasn’t worried about Maddie...sometimes the wounds just needed time to heal...she just needed some time to heal. 

A couple hours pass and Buck feels ready to drop, but it is his sheer determination to make sure everyone was protected that kept him standing. He’ll blame it on blood loss for the fact it took until the vehicle was in shooting distance that he didn’t notice it. Buck stood, placing a hand on the vehicle to steady himself as his vision swam.  _ Shit _ , this was getting harder to ignore. Buck firmly decided to ignore how his hands shook as he readied his axe. 

“Holy fuck, Buck,” Chim shouted as he bailed out of the vehicle. 

It took a second for his voice to work, “Maddie….Mads, h’snt woke. Hours, h’snt woke.”

“Okay, Buckaroo, take a seat. Chim’s going to check on her,” Hen whispered as she placed a hand on the uninjured part of his arm.

“Ev’where. Fuckers wou’nt stop. Kept com’n...protected ‘em.”

“We know Evan. Take it easy,” Bobby quietly spoke as he looked between Buck and the vehicle Chim had disappeared into. 

“Jus’ pull ‘t out. Waited ‘til...got ‘ere.” 

“Can’t in front of all these people, Buck. You know the drill,” Athena patted his head affectionately. 

“Mmm,” he hummed, eyes starting to slip closed. “Mads ‘s dying,” he whispered, too spent to cry at the words.

“And she’ll come back,” Hen started.

Buck shook his head harshly, not caring how it made his vision swim even more. “Wasn’t healing.” 

Before the three of them could reply, Chim came over, carrying Maddie. “We need to get moving now!” 

“I’ll sort out the hostages, get them back to the safehouse,” Bobby called. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eddie paced anxiously as he waited for the majority of the group to return. Athena had called ahead to warn Eddie that Christopher needed to be occupied as the siblings were brought back in. She had said it wasn’t good. He definitely wasn’t prepared for it when Hen and Athena carried Buck passed him nor when Chim entered with Maddie. “What the fuck happened,” he hissed as he followed the group. 

“The organization was bigger than our intel. We walked into a bloodbath. They had hostages and Buck tends to go crazy over innocents getting hurt, so he was working on freeing them. Maddie went down sometime during the fray, we honestly didn’t know that she had been moved until we finished the battle and we noticed both siblings missing. Buck had jumped on one of the vans leaving the compound. It took us a while to track and when we did...Buck was like this...well, he was talking, even if it was somewhat slurred. He passed out halfway here,” Athena sighed. “Before transport, Buck said Maddie was dying. Said she wasn’t healing and hadn’t been for hours. It seems as if that might be true.”

“You’re saying that she might...she might die...permanently?”

Athena sighed, “it’s looking that way.” 

“I’m going to pull the shrapnel then look for other major problems that I could help him with so he heals and comes back faster,” Hen called. 

“Wait, just wait a minute,” Eddie exclaimed, causing Hen to look up to him questioningly. “If Maddie isn’t healing, what’s to say Buck is? What if you-you pull that out and...they became immortal around the same time, what if they die at the same time?”

“Eddie,” Athena started, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, “I can’t promise that won’t happen, but if we do nothing, he’s still going to bleed out.” 

Eddie stepped closer to Buck, placing a hand on his shoulder and leaning down to his ear, “you don’t get to die on me, Eyvindr. I’ll hunt you down and kill you myself if you do.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Four days. It took four days for Evan to heal himself enough to wake up. Eddie was not happy. Between having to answer impossible questions from his son and trying to make sure Maddie was alright, waiting for Buck to wake up made him severely anxious. As it turns out, Maddie was very much not alright. Her wounds were healing at a normal rate instead of the sped up process due to their immortality. She was getting better, but the others were thinking that this was it, Maddie could actually die...and that would kill Buck. Not to mention Chim. He’s been by her side since she’d been brought in. 

Eddie was seated beside Buck. He barely left other than to check on Chris...but he always came back and he waited. It was mid day on day four when Buck’s eyes jumped open.  _ “Magdalena? Magdalena! Are you alright,”  _ Eddie couldn’t understand anything other than Maddie’s name. 

“Buck, she’s fine. She’s resting and healing like you are.”

_ “Magdalena!”  _ Buck began to push himself up, hissing in pain, but continuing to get up.

Eddie shook his head, placing his hands on his arms to hold him down. “Eyvindr! Stop! You still need to finish healing. Maddie is alright!” 

One second, Eddie was gripping Buck’s shoulders, the next he was picking himself off the ground. Buck was pulling himself off the side of the bed and beginning to stand as Eddie stood himself back up. Clearly Buck was going to be difficult...maybe he was stuck in a memory or he was just that  _ idiotic _ that he couldn’t sit in bed and rest until he saw his sister. What did he expect, the man was a fucking Viking, he’d push everything back until he made sure the people he cared about was safe. 

As Buck stumbled into a door jam, Eddie reappeared, hooking Buck’s arm around his shoulders. “I’ll take you to her, but then you have to stay there, lying in the bed next to her. You shouldn’t be moving at all.”

The trek to Maddie’s room was a long one, though it was lucky that Christopher was in a lesson with Athena and Bobby so that he wouldn’t have to see Buck’s towering frame shaking like a gentle breeze could blow him over. Each step they took, Buck leaned heavier and heavier on Eddie’s frame. “It’s alright, we’re almost there,” Eddie murmured. 

Eddie pushed the door to Maddie’ room open, startling Chim. Before Chim could question Eddie, Eddie was pulling Buck through the door. He sat Buck down on the bed, “lay down,” he ordered. He brought Buck’s legs gently up the bed as Buck laid back, turning slightly to look at his sister. “He woke up and was determined to make his way here to find Maddie. Rather than get thrown into another wall, I helped him here so he didn’t collapse and pass out.”

“I understand...Maddie probably would have done the same thing,” Chim gave Eddie a small smile. “Hey, Buckaroo,” Buck slowly turned his gaze from Maddie to Chim, “Eddie and I are going to go get some lunch, do you want anything?” 

Buck shook his head, turning back to Maddie. With Eddie’s protests, Chim manhandled him out the door, leaving Buck with his sister. Tentatively, Buck brought a shaky hand to Maddie’s less bruised cheek.  _ “Magdalena, please do not do this to me again. I can not-”  _ a quiet sob interrupted his words.  _ “Please do not leave me again _ ,” he moved closer to his sister, hesitating slightly before placing his head on her chest to hear the comfort of her heart beat. He brought an arm over her stomach, barely putting any weight on it.  _ “I love you. Hang on for me, please.” _

When Eddie came back later, that was how he found them. Buck with his head on Maddie’s chest, an arm around her waist and dried tear tracks on his face. That was when Eddie knew he’d do anything to make sure Buck didn’t have to feel this pain again for a  _ long  _ time. 

* * *

**2019 CE…………..Russian Border**

Buck and Eddie worked in tandem. They were an inseparable force sweeping through the last of the men and women following them. The group was reminded of Maddie and Buck fighting side by side for the past melinia...but they had never looked as in sinc as Eddie and Buck. Buck placed a hand on Eddie’s chest, pushing him back as a knife flew through the air, embedding itself in Buck’s left forearm. Eddie easily pulled it from his arm, glaring at the knife before throwing it to meet the head of the person who threw it. They made quick work of the last few people before turning to follow their friends on their retreat.

Buck raised an eyebrow at the group standing behind them. “So you stand there, but don’t help us? How nice of you,” Buck rolled his eyes.

“Yeah real-” Eddie dropped as a gunshot rang through the air. 

“Mother-” Chim started towards the gun, but Buck beat him to it. Having pulled the gun from the man’s hand, Buck picked him up by the neck. He leaned in and whispered something to the man that had the man’s eyes widening. Within seconds, they heard the snap of a neck and the man dropped lifelessly to the ground. 

It was like Buck hadn’t moved as he knelt back at Eddie’s side. “Wake up, Eds.”

“Let’s get him in-”

Buck was already moving with Eddie’s body as Athena began to suggest a change of scenery. He hopped in the back of the vehicle, clutching Eddie close to his chest, not minding the blood that spilled from the wound and sunk into his clothes. He brushed Eddie’s hair back gently, continuing to whisper to him. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

By the time they made it back to the safehouse, Eddie’s wound had healed and he only had a slight headache as he and Buck had talked quietly, pressed up against each other so no space remained. Buck had helped Eddie into the house, even as the other tried to decline the help at first. One look between the two and Eddie allowed the help.

Maddie was the first to greet them, looking worriedly at the blood coating Eddie and Buck before frowning at both men and the others. “You said this one would be easy,” she stated. 

“It was,” Eddie answered. At the look Maddie leveled at him, he continued, “I mean, there were a couple of complications, but it was relatively easy at first.”

Buck smiled at Maddie, “you know we have each other’s backs, Mads. We’re all good. Working with Eddie is like working with you.”

“Hell yeah it was. You two work so in sync, it’s scary,” Hen replied. 

Maddie laughed quietly. “Is everyone alright? Anything need to be looked at?” 

“We’re all good, Maddie,” Athena responded. 

“How was Chris,” Eddie asked.

“Well, he complained about the fact he didn’t get to go out on an ‘easy mission’, but he isn’t a hard kid to keep happy. We colored, finished building that Star Trek Death Star thing-”

“Star Wars,” Eddie supplied.

Maddie rolled her eyes, “Star Wars Death Star thing, he went to bed relatively on time and he’s been doing his school work for most of the morning. He’s been good. You might want to wash up soon, lunch will be ready soon and you might scar the poor kid with how you look.”

“To be fair, he’s seen all of us die, I’m not sure if this would scare him as much considering he’d see us alive,” Chim stated. 

“He’s still a kid, Chim,” Buck sighed.

“He’s an immortal kid, Buck.”

“That doesn’t mean we can’t protect him for as long as we can! He doesn’t deserve to have his childhood ripped away from him for some sort of preset destiny! He should have been able to grow older before he ever became one of us! That kid is the one person we’ve been missing for centuries, he loves so easily and is constantly happy. Nothing ever gets him down and I’m not going to jeopardize that by letting him see us like we’ve just gone through hell and back! He already knows that Maddie could die at any time now, I’m not going to have him make the connection that maybe, one day when we’re on a mission, one of us might not come back because of some fucked up time schedule of immortals dying for no fucking reason! He deserves to be oblivious for the first decade of this fucked up life!” Buck stalked off to his room to shower, leaving the group in stunned silence.

“Howie,” Maddie finally sighed. 

“What? I was just making a point. At some point Chris is going to find out about how shitty these missions can be...either the hard way by us showing up worse for wear or by us sitting down and talking to him. Eventually he has to know...this is his life now.”

Eddie shook his head, “that day doesn’t have to be today. I agree with Buck, Christopher doesn’t deserve to have his happiness taken away after being forced into this life.” Turning to Maddie, Eddie gave her a small smile, “thanks for looking out for my kid. I’m going to check on your brother then I’ll clean up and take Chris off your hands.”

“Take your time. I told you, Chris is a wonderful kid.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eddie, after realizing that Buck was showering, decided to grab his own shower before coming back to Buck’s room to wait for his best friend. Clearly there were a few things bothering him and Eddie was ready to get to the bottom of it. While he supported everything Buck had said, he knew it was coming from not only a want to protect his kid but from some sort of personal problem as well. 

Eddie sat himself on the edge of Buck’s bed as he waited for Buck to finish his own shower. The man was probably taking extra time to calm himself from his argument earlier. Sucked into his thoughts, Eddie didn’t notice the bathroom door open until Buck was walking out with a towel around his waist. Anything Eddie had prepared to say left his mind completely as his mouth dried up. It should be a crime for anyone to look  _ that _ good. 

Buck stopped, eyeing Eddie on his bed. His face was the perfect poker face of not letting Eddie see what he was thinking or feeling. “Thought you’d be with Chris,” Buck questioned as he walked further into the room.

Eddie cleared his throat quietly. “He was doing school work, I didn’t want to intrude. Plus, my best friend seemed to need a shoulder to lean on for a bit. Want to tell me the other reason behind your blowout with Chim?”

Buck shook his head, scoffing. “What, I-I say some things to Chim about not wanting to ruin Chris’s childhood and you suddenly think there’s some ulterior motive behind it? Seriously Eddie, do you think that low of me?” 

“I never said anything about an ulterior motive. I want to know what’s bothering you. If you keep it locked up, it’s only going to hurt you more later. I care about you, Man...so talk it out with me.”

Buck turned his back to Eddie, looking through his dresser for more clothes. Pulling out a pair of boxers, Buck slipped them on, letting the towel fall to the floor, once again making Eddie’s throat dry slightly. “There’s really nothing to talk about. Chris got sucked into this life way before he should have and, for what? To see how bad the world truly is? Watch as humanity once again turns on one another? He should be a normal kid, with friends his age. He should be growing up, going on a first date, going to prom, going to college, experiencing the world without being tied to a bunch of immortal freaks who aren’t even truly immortal. And when he finally died, he should have stayed dead,” Buck exclaimed. Buck was breathing hard by the time he finished his rant. He was gripping the dresser in front of him tightly. “We all shouldn’t be here, Eddie! We should all be dead! And-and the thing is, we all eventually will be! What will watching you actually die do to Chris, huh? Do-do you think he’ll be all sunshine and roses then? No, his fucking dad died on him and now he has no one who ties him to his past life! He’s alone, the last of his generation and there’s nothing he can do about it because someday, he’ll be dead too but after everyone else he loves dies too because no one ever fucking stays! Don’t you see Eddie? We’re cursed! Cursed to live this life and watch everyone we love die and I can’t do it anymore! I can’t watch my sister die like Ali and Abby and I can’t watch you or Chris die because it’ll fucking kill me! I-I can’t-” sobs wracked Buck’s body and Eddie had just enough time to catch him before his legs gave out.

Eddie slid them to the ground, bringing Buck close to him, letting the man cry on his shoulder. “Let it out, let it out. I’m here. I’m right here with you, Evan. I’m not going anywhere so long as I can help it,” Eddie whispered as he rocked them both.

“Sh-She died and I was-I was ready to die to b-be with her! I should have stayed dead, Eddie!”

Eddie shook his head vehemently. “No! If you had died then, I would have never met you. Chris would have never met you and that would be a damn shame! Christopher loves you, Eyvindr. He loves listening to you talk about your time in Norway and Greenland. He loves hearing about the ceremonies and the PG battles. He loves hearing you talk about your journey through time-they’re his favorite bedtime stories, even if he says he’s too old for bedtime stories. And me...I’d probably have gone insane without you here. You’re my best friend, you know me probably better than I know myself. No one here compares to you. I trust you completely, both with myself and Christopher...we love you and we need you.” 

Buck looked up from his spot on Eddie’s shoulder. The red rimmed eyes made Eddie want to cry while simultaneously making sure Evan never cried again. “D-do you-do you mean that,” he asked quietly.

Eddie nodded, “every single word.”

Buck buried his head back in Eddie’s neck, his breath tickling the skin there. “I love you and need you too...both of you.”

Eddie placed a kiss on Buck’s hair, “I know.”

A small laugh left Buck’s body, “when I’m not a mess, I’ll take you out on a real date.”

Eddie rolled his eyes fondly, “you mean the twenty missions we’ve been on weren’t dates? Damn, I thought those were going well.”

“Don’t be a smartass,” Buck chuckled.

* * *

**2020 CE………….Paris Safehouse**

“Alright Diazes. Are you sure you want to commit yourself to this?” 

“Buuuuuck,” Christopher groaned, drawing a smile from the man, “for the last tiiiime! We want to see your home!”

Buck ruffled the kid’s hair, “I know that, buddy...it’s just really cold there. It’s a little miserable for two people who  _ love _ their warm climates.” 

“I think what Chris is saying is we don’t care about the climate. We just want to see where you came from...because, obviously, there have to be very handsome men walking around at all times if they sprouted you in the mix.”

Buck gave him an incredulous look, “okay, I think I don’t want to go. Clearly your dad is planning on ogling men who aren’t me and that is unacceptable.”

“No! Daaaad! Tell him he’s wrong!” 

Eddie chuckled, bringing Buck closer to his body, leaning up slightly to kiss the man. “You will be the only man I stare at while we’re there, promise.”

Buck smirked at him, placing another kiss on his lips, much to Christopher’s protest, before wrapping an arm around Eddie’s waist, “I better be the only one you stare at or you’ll be in big trouble.”

“Is that a promise,” Eddie asked innocently. 

The look that Buck got in his eyes at that statement was worth Christopher’s groan, “seriously Dad? That’s gross.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Mijo.”

Buck chuckled to himself as he disengaged himself from Eddie and grabbed their bags. “Alright, let’s get out of here.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As predicted, Norway was particularly cold when they arrived. It seemed that the cold invigorated Buck, he was immediately lighter as they walked around the streets of Oslo. “Winters here used to be much colder. Now it stays around zero to negative six degrees celsius. For my Americans, that would be thirty-two to twenty-one degrees fahrenheit. If I had to guess back in my time, it would get as low as maybe zero degrees fahrenheit, maybe a little warmer? In Greenland, where I lived for most of my childhood, it would drop in the winter. They say that now it can drop to negative fifty degrees celsius which is negative fifty-eight degrees fahrenheit. That sounds about right for when I was living there. Fun fact, it can snow during the Summer in Greenland. It was just...snow all the time. I didn’t particularly like that, so when Maddie got married and moved back to Norway, I convinced my father to take us back there so that we could be involved in the war effort.” 

Buck let out a breath, having stopped to look around at a particular subdivision. “This was our village. It was much smaller at the time, only a hundred or so people. Once I was old enough, I built my first hut.” Buck took Eddie’s hand after placing Christopher on his hip. He brought both of them into the subdivision. He stopped a third of the way down and pointed at a house across the way, “that was where I put my hut. I was next to the nicest woman in our village. She always made sure I had enough bread during the winter. I returned her kindness by always bringing in extra meat for her.” 

They walked further down until Buck stopped again, “this was my father’s hut. I spent as little time here as possible. We didn’t really get along that well. He always said that I wasn’t ‘man enough’. That’s why I pushed so hard to come back here for the war effort. It was a rite of passage for a young male to go through battle to become a man. It showed that we were capable, that we were strong and brave like Vikings should be. Sadly, even after my first battle, my father didn’t look at me as a man. He was never happy with me, so I just let it go...eventually.”

They walked further, Eddie’s heart breaking as he knew where they would be heading next. “Baby, you don’t have to-”

“You both wanted to visit my home...this is part of it. I did promise I’d share everything with you both...the good and the bad.” Near the end of the subdivision, there was a worn down house, not as nice looking as the others. Buck let out a bitter snicker, “seems like time hasn’t forgotten what happened here,” he muttered. “This used to be Maddie’s hut. At first, she was always so happy. She decorated the place and, let me tell you, it was beautiful. I should have noticed sooner, when the place started looking less decorative. She stopped inviting me over...she was less energetic, less happy as time went on. I mean...I knew some of the guys did that, but I never understood how they could just...just hurt their wives that way. I didn’t want to believe that Maddie was one of them...but eventually I started trying to stop it…”

Buck walked closer to the building, forgetting about Chris and Eddie as he continued to talk, “I tried talking with the bastard, but he just laughed in my face...so I beat him until he could hardly be recognized...I learned later that he repaid that on my sister. I talked to my father only to get hit for asking him to help me and Magdalena. He told me that it was a man’s job to keep his wife in line...however he saw fit,” Buck sneered at the words. “My last attempt was to ask Mags to run away with me. I told her that we could head back to Greenland or through Norway and find a new place to settle down...a place where our father and her husband couldn’t find us. I told her that I would take better care of her this time, but she turned me down...she said she’d handle it,” Buck sighed, “and I was stupid enough to believe her. I left for war and I came back to-” his voice cracks, “fuck,” he mutters as he begins to cry. 

Eddie places a gentle hand on his back, turning him away from the home and into his chest. “I know, Amor. I am so sorry.”

Christopher placed a hand on Buck’s cheek, “you’re gonna be okay, Kid,” he stated. That caused Buck to cry a little harder. Buck allowed himself a moment to feel the pain he hadn’t allowed himself to feel back then. He allowed himself a moment of vulnerability because he didn’t have to worry with Chris or Eddie by his side. 

Buck took a deep breath, Eddie wiping the final tears from his face before giving him a gentle kiss. “Okay, moving on,” he cleared his throat and walked a little farther. Another subdivision was across the way, but he stopped at the very end of the subdivision they had just looked at. “There used to be a forest here. I would come here to hunt. And...when I found out,” he cleared his throat again, “when it all happened, I dragged that piece of shit into these woods and I killed him.”

The group was silent for a moment before Eddie placed his head on Buck’s free shoulder. “If put in your position...I would have done the same thing,” he muttered. 

Buck gave him a grateful smile, pressing a kiss to his forehead. “You did what you had to,” Chris began, “he deserved it.”

Buck gave a choked laugh, “yeah...yeah he did.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After talking to Maddie, Eddie was still nervous. He didn’t know how Buck would react...but he could only hope that the reaction would be positive. Buck deserved to be happy...and Eddie wanted to spend the rest of his life making him happy. After their trip to Norway, Eddie had talked to Christopher and the kid had readily agreed. 

The mission that Buck, Hen, and Athena went on hadn’t required all of them and Eddie had been anxious since they left...he decided that now was the best time to do this. When he returned, Eddie was going to ask. 

Maddie rose from her spot next to Chimney where she had been watching whatever was on television. She came and placed a comforting hand on Eddie’s shoulder. “Don’t be so tense, Buck is fine and he’s happy.”

Eddie gave Maddie a slightly tense smile but, as he heard the door open, he felt that tenseness intensify. But, as Buck’s laugh resonated in the hall, Eddie’s shoulders dropped. He stood as Buck came into view. The man was all smiles, bringing Eddie into a breathtaking hug before placing a kiss on his lips as a greeting. “I love you,” Eddie stated.

Buck’s smile widened, “I love you too!”

Eddie smiled, “I know...and that’s why I want to spend the rest of my life with you.” Eddie stepped back from Buck’s embrace slightly. “I know this may be dumb or-or not needed, but...I fucking love you and you, honestly, are my better half...you’re amazing with my son and you fit into our dynamic so well...I want to spend the rest of my life with you through the good and the bad, century after century because I know that with you, I’ll never be bored. I want to be there for you, when the inevitable happens, when Chris makes us more art, when the next mission goes right or wrong...I want it all. I want it all with you. I want to marry you and I’m hoping that you want to marry me too,” Eddie flushed as he let out a breath and pulled out a small black box. He stepped a little closer to Buck, “Christopher helped me pick it out. We wanted it to represent the three of us. We love you and we’re never letting you go. My Viking, Mi Amor, My Eyvindr...will you marry me?”

Buck’s hands came to cup Eddie’s face. He pulled him in, kissing him passionately. As he let Eddie breathe he whispered, “by Odin, I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you.” He emphasized each ‘I love you’ with a kiss. “I’m going to marry the hell out of you.”

Eddie chuckled, bringing Buck in closer to kiss him again, his arms wrapping around Buck’s waist. “I don’t doubt it,” he murmured into Buck’s lips.

“I love you,” Buck pressed to his lips.

“I love you more,” Eddie replied.

“I love you too, but I would love you more if you stopped making out with each other,” Christopher called from beside the men. 

The two men laughed, pulling back. Eddie placed the ring on Buck’s finger before they both lifted the boy to be level with them. They kissed his cheeks, making the boy giggle. “I love you too Chris...maybe even more than I love your dad.”

“Oh, really? I don’t have to marry you.”

Buck raised an eyebrow, “no take backs,” he responded, “you’re stuck with me.”

Eddie smiled lovingly at him, “yeah, I am...and I love it.”

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked it! Wasn't that sure about the ending...but the fic was getting way long and I did want to get them engaged at least... I quite enjoyed writing this...it is definitely the longest fic I've ever written.


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